Yu-Gi-Oh! Fan Fiction ❯ Overcoming Loneliness ❯ Chapter 1 ( Chapter 1 )

A/N - Ah, the odd and ever rare OtogixJoeyxYugi fics...-_- ok so I've never read or seen one, I happen to like this couple^^ Please r/r!

Overcoming Loneliness

How was it that I first met them? It's been so long I almost don't remember... I know it was at the fair but...Oh yes, now I remember.

I was at the school fair. I was walking around with Yami, my one friend I could depend on, probably because we were so much alike, especially in looks. That was something we both found very peculiar but decided not to talk about it.

The fair wasn't very interesting but it saved us from total boredom. School was ending so whatever friends I had made weren't around, I wasn't exactly sure why, but they weren't. To be honest, it was rather depressing to find I had very little dependable friends. Yami said not to worry; the ones I knew weren't very nice anyways.

As we walked around, I ran into a classmate of mine, a very annoying one at that. She was one of the typical girls that like dance, makeup and gossip. I couldn't stand her perky attitude, it was worse than anyone could imagine. I've often been told that I'm a happy person, but not in any way like this. She is just...fake and unnatural.

"Hey Yugi! Notice anything different about me?" She asked. She looked the same to me.

"No, Téa, you look the same," I said flatly. I could hear Yami trying to stifle a laugh. I knew he hated her as much as I did.

"You mean you don't see it?!" She all but screeched at me. I sighed and waited for her to tell me what was different. "I have new lipstick! How could you not notice?!" She whined. I sighed again.

"Very nice, Téa. I'll see you later," I couldn't help sounding depressed, it seemed the only ones I had around me were annoying and self centered. Minus Yami of course, he was the only normal one.

"Something wrong, Yugi?" Yami asked once we were a relatively safe distance from Téa. Relatively because she was always around, no matter what. Unless of course, you left town.

"Nothing, Yami. Don't worry about it," I said. I knew it wasn't convincing, but Yami knew better than to press the issue. I was walking with my head down, not really having the energy to keep it up.

During this time, I accidentally walked right into someone that Yami hadn't warned me about. Needless to say, that being shorter than pretty much everyone, I fell to the ground while the other, very tall person, was still standing.

"Oh! I'm sorry, are you alright?" They asked. I rubbed my head and nodded. Surprisingly, he held his hand out and helped me stand. When I was finally upright, I strained my neck to look at the person in front of me. We both gasped. I at his beauty and him...At I don't know what. But both of us blushed in embarrassment and I heard laughs from behind us. I turned to see Yami giggling in one area, alone. Then, nearer to the person I ran into, were five more people.

"Nice one Joey. You alright, kid? Joey can be really clumsy," said one brown haired guy, also very tall.

"Shut up, Tristan," the guy, who I guess is Joey, said. The others just laughed at him. It was very strange though...There were people that looked just like my Yami and I. Well, not just like us. But each had a...twin of sorts. Two had silver hair and brown eyes, the other two had pale blonde hair and violet eyes. Very strange indeed, but I didn't want say anything.

"Anyways," he said, turning back to me. "These are my friends, 'Lik, Mali, Ryou and Bakura. The first two have the same name so we had to shorten it," He said, pointing to each individual as he said their name. They greeted me with small waves.

"Hey! You didn't introduce me!" Tristan said.

"I said that these are my friends, Tristan," Joey teased. The others started laughing and I couldn't help in joining them. Tristan stayed silent, but pouted.

"So are you going to introduce us?" Joey asked, gesturing to Yami and myself.

"Oh! Sorry, this is Yami and I'm Yugi," I said. I blushed nervously and Yami walked over, shaking Joey's hand.

"Nice to meet you and your friends, Joey," he said smoothly. I always admired how cool and calm he always seemed to be, even in a bad situation.

"Nice to meet you. I'm really sorry about running into you like that, Yugi. Would you and Yami like to join us for the fair as an apology?" Joey asked. I blushed and the five behind them whistled and catcalled making Joey turn to glare at all of them, silencing them. Well...all except the threesome of 'Lik, Mali and Ryou. Joey sighed and turned back to me, waiting for an answer. I nodded, speechless. I wasn't used to having anyone actually wanting to be around me. I sensed Yami's gratefulness, he must have wanted to join a group as well, I mustn't be very good company for him.

We joined the group, I walked on the outside next to Joey and no one else, I wasn't very comfortable with the group yet.

Then, for the second time in one day, I was run into. I was really beginning to hate my shortness. This person wasn't very nice about it either.

"Watch were you're going you little runt," he glared down at me and I resisted the urge to hide behind Joey. But before anyone did anything about it, we noticed that his gaze moved away from me to glance over the group. He was about to make a rude comment, I could tell by the angry look on his face. But he stopped when his gaze fell upon Yami. I looked at Yami and noticed him staring as well. Ever hear of love at first sight? Well, I never thought it was true. But it must have been, Yami suddenly left with the very tall, blue-eyed, brown haired stranger. I heard somebody mumble the name 'Kaiba' after him, along with a few unpleasant words I chose to tune out.

"Your friend doesn't choose men very well. Or maybe he does...Depends on how you look at things I guess," Bakura said.

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"Well...It would be bad taste because Seto is a jerk in all meanings of the word. However, it would be a good choice because he has his own company, a very rich person for only seventeen," Bakura said.

"Really?" I gasped. Everyone nodded in agreement. I sighed and walked along with the group. I lowered my head again, it had been up so far, but now I didn't feel like holding it up. Yami just left me, not saying a word. It was like he forgot about me...But I knew it wasn't true and I had to learn not to be so clingy.

"Yugi~!" I cringed. The call of Téa and most likely a bunch of her friends. I sighed sadly and stopped walking.

"What is it, Yugi?" Joey asked. He and the group stopped and looked at me. I just stood and waited for Téa to show her ugly face.

Luckily, she was alone. She ran up behind me and hugged me, choking me so hard and I actually started coughing. I noticed Joey's disapproval of her and nearly melted. He was so nice to me and he even knew how annoying Téa was. I think I fell in love then.

"Yugi, I've been thinking about this. We've known each other for years, right? Well I think it would do you a world of good, especially for your social status and ego, if we started dating. Don't bother answering I already know you'll say yes, so let's just make this short and go tell everyone you've agreed, okay?" She said. I stood there, staring blankly at her. Slowly, I felt laughter. It was threatening to erupt from my throat. I started off as a chuckle, then laughter, then finally ended with me laughing so hysterically that my sides ached and I had trouble breathing.

Téa was furious, she screeched again and stormed off, I think I heard her swear vengeance or something.

"Are you alright, Yugi?" Joey asked. Once I had finally calmed down and caught my breath, I nodded and smiled.

"Are you sure you should have done that?" Ryou asked.

"Why wouldn't I?" I asked. I cocked my head and looked at him questioningly. I noticed Joey twitch in nervousness...I wonder why?

"Well...Isn't she your girlfriend?" Tristan answered. It seemed Ryou was too embarrassed to ask. I looked at them all and broke out into a fresh batch of laughter. I heard them all sigh and I found it rather amusing. They must be glad I had no connections with her.

Finally, after I calmed down again, I asked them a question I should have asked earlier, but never thought of it till now.

"Do you guys go to my school? I've never seen you there before," I said. Joey smiled and answered the question.

"Only three of us do, plus Kaiba. Me, Tristan and Ryou," he said. I nodded.

"I still haven't seen you," I said. Joey and the others shrugged and we began walking again. Soon I realized we had been around the entire fair, the thought made me sad, I didn't want to leave them, not yet.

"I guess I should get going..." I said reluctantly, there was nothing I could do to stop them from leaving so I might as well go with it.

"So soon? Why don't you come with us, you'll be all alone without Yami around," Joey said. It was then that he cried out as a dice hit him in the middle of his forehead. Another person, this one with black hair and green eyes, showed up.

"Dammit, what did you do that for?" Joey yelled at the newcomer. I was getting that feeling again, the unwanted feeling that made me uneasy. This new person had a dice in his left ear and was smirking at Joey. Before I knew who he was, he had his arm around Joey's shoulder.

"Because I like being in control, or do you not remember?" He whispered in his ear. I sighed, I really should get going, I was definitely not wanted, this new person didn't even see me. I think that he was Joey's boyfriend or something.

"Would you two knock it off, it's sickening," Tristan whined. I stifled a laugh.

"Yeah, Otogi, save your caresses for later," Ryou joked. Otogi sighed and unwrapped his arm from Joey.

"So, who are you?" I didn't realize that it was me he was talking to, so I didn't respond. Well, not until I felt the knocking on the side of my head. "Anybody there?" He smirked and I smiled.

"Sorry. My name is Yugi," I said. He smiled and stood up straight, he was tall too.

"Nice to meet you, I'm Otogi," he held out his hand and I shook it once before pulling back. I wasn't used to this many people.

"So Joey, how'd you meet him?" He asked.

"Mr. Clumsy walked right into him," Tristan answered. It was responded by a dice to the forehead. I laughed, Joey had stolen the one that Otogi used on him and fired it at Tristan. My laughter died though as another wave of loneliness crept over. Even though they were being nice, I had faced false people that acted the same and well...the result is obvious. I still didn't trust people. I began to back away from the group, hoping they wouldn't notice me so I could get away.

Instead I bumped into a third person, my back running into them.

"Where are you going?" I looked up; it was 'Lik, one of the ones that stayed normally with Bakura, Ryou and his 'twin'. I was thankful that he said it quiet enough so the others wouldn't hear.

"I don't belong..." I whispered. 'Lik looked at me with sympathy, a look I found didn't really go along with his character, but it was still genuine.

"What makes you say such a thing?" He asked me. I sighed.

"It's always the same, I find some nice people and then they leave me. I don't know why..." I said. 'Lik smiled a little and nodded.

"I understand. And you are upset about the way Otogi and Joey are acting?" He asked. I was stunned, I didn't think it was that obvious. "Thought so. However, you can relax, they're dating each other but it isn't much more than that. Both are free to do whatever they want with others. Quite different from the relationship I'm in."

"Relationship? I'm afraid you've lost me." I said. I understood what he said about Otogi and Joey dating, but I didn't know there was any other relationship to have.

"The one I have with Mali and Ryou," I looked at him wide-eyed and he grinned. "I thought that might surprise you. But, we can discuss this later, it looks like your friend is back," he turned me around and pointed to where Yami was walking back. He was walking kind of funny though and his hair and clothing were a little disheveled. On top of that, he had a silly grin on his face.

"Yami!" I said, running up to him and hugging him. He was the only one I would hug willingly, the only one I loved and trusted as a friend. He was almost like a brother or another half.

"Are you alright, Yugi?" He asked me, still glowing. I nodded and let him go.

"I think I'm going to head home, I guess I'll meet you there," I said. Despite his efforts, 'Lik hadn't really convinced me to stay. I just needed to leave.

"Are you sure?" Yami asked. We were speaking in whispers, Joey and his friends chatting while waiting patiently for us.

"I need some time to myself," I said. We both knew that was a lie, but he let me go anyways.

"Very well," he lost his glow and was now looking at me with love and concern. I turned and waved to the group.

"I'm sorry, but I have to get going. It was nice meeting you all," 'Lik looked at me with sadness but remained silent. I didn't see anyone else's expression. I knew that I would just be hurt when I saw the relief in their eyes.

I started to walk away when I heard Joey and Otogi call out.

"Wait!" They said. I turned around surprised and they spoke to the group before walking over to me.

"Let us walk you home," Joey said. They both grinned. I looked at them nervously, the others had left and Yami was standing a few feet away, waiting for my reaction so he could head off with the others.

"Well...I..." I stuttered, I wasn't used to so much attention. I quickly found that I couldn't speak, so I nodded instead. The two of them grinned wider and one went on either side of me and we began walking. I looked back to see Yami smiling before he headed off with the others.

While we were walking, I saw Otogi holding a brown paper bag and became curious.

"What's in the bag?" I asked. Otogi stopped and looked at me as if he didn't know what I was talking about. I pointed to the bag and he looked at his hand.

"Oh! I forgot, Joey this is yours," he handed the bag to Joey.

"What is it?" He asked.

"A certain something I'm sure you'll enjoy," he winked at Joey making him blush and we continued walking.

When we neared my house I stopped.

"I should get going, thanks for walking me home," I said and quickly walked up the steps to my home.

"Yugi, wait!" Joey called me. I turned around, surprised to seem him and Otogi right behind me.

"Why are you leaving so soon? Are we that bad?" Otogi asked. Now I felt guilty, I hadn't meant to hurt their feelings.

"No, no. I'm sorry it's just..." I trailed off, not really sure what to say and not wanting to say it even if I did know. Joey seemed to understand.

"Oh okay, I know why. I think I noticed that at school," he said. I was surprised, I didn't know he'd ever seen me. Otogi seemed to clue in as well.

"Oh, I'm sorry, Yugi. I didn't mean to hurt your feelings, I was being dense," he said. Shocked again. This was becoming a habit.

"No it's all right, really. You didn't know because I didn't say anything," I said.

"Yugi...how about we go out to dinner? I mean, I'm sure you could use it and I'm starving," Joey grinned and I found it impossible to resist it. Otogi whacked him on the back of the head and I looked at him, puzzled. Otogi simply shook his head.

"Always thinking about his stomach. Always ruins the mood," I chuckled, it was funny. "Anyways, let's get going. You'll want to drop that bag off at home first though, Joey, I don't think you want anyone to see what's inside," Otogi grinned then pulled me away from my doorstep and dragged me down the sidewalk, Joey not far behind with his face as red as a tomato. I had to ask.

"What's in the bag that keeps making him blush?"

"Oh that," Otogi laughed. "It's part of a game he and I play sometimes. He complains but deep down I know he loves it," he winked at me and I was stunned. He'd answered my question but I still didn't know what was in the bag. I guessed he really cared about Joey's embarrassment.

"You must really care for him if you're keeping it a secret," I said. Otogi looked down at me, he seemed a little sad.

"I suppose," he said. He smiled softly and I could see the love in his eyes, perhaps he did care but it wasn't returned...I didn't understand why he would be so sad about caring about him.

"Hey you two, wait up already!" Joey called I stopped and turned around, Joey was running to catch up; I guess he hadn't noticed we started walking without him. Otogi turned around and faced him, it seemed the mask he had before slipped back into place and he laughed.

"Hurry up, Joey or we're eating without you!" He laughed, it made me smile. The two of them were really close and I wondered if I should be there...but I didn't let myself think about it, I didn't want them worrying.

"Very funny," Joey said when he walked up to us, he stuck his tongue out at Otogi who -much to my surprise and probably Joey's - licked it then grinned and turned back around, walking on as if nothing happened. I laughed when I saw Joey's face, full of surprise, his jaw slightly dropped. I stopped walking after he did and walked up to him, I stood on my tip-toes and closed his mouth with my finger.

"You can stop gaping now. If you keep your face that way it may get stuck," I smiled and turned around, walking quickly to catch up to Otogi, we winked at each other then burst out laughing. Joey finally caught up but ignored us the entire way to his house where he dropped off his bag in his room, then came out and we walked to find somewhere to eat.

[End Chapter 1]

A/N - So...was it weird? I think they're cute...but hey, that's me, you might not like it^^; please r/r!