Yu-Gi-Oh! Fan Fiction ❯ Tender You ❯ Chapter 1

[ P - Pre-Teen ]

Tender You
He felt trapped. Caged, like a rat. And there was nothing he could do. He couldn't escape, he'd already tried that, and failed miserably. With punishment awaiting him also. There was no way out for him now.
He would probably die here.
The tombs were their usual cheerful selves. Dark and depressing, with only a mouse or moth for company. Compared to the usual loneliness, he would actually take the company of a mouse if even its main objective was to steal his food. Not that he got much food, but anyway...
He was confined to his room. There was hardly any light, the only source being a dim candle that flickered on his nightstand and swayed ever-so-slightly in the windless air. Even with its dim light, he'd spent almost his entire life in the darkness, so this dim and small candle was enough for him to make out the gloomy setting of his room.
Stoned walls and floors, a small wooden bookshelf next to his nightstand which was his only source of entertainment when he was confined, and a bed that he was curled up on, tattered from years of usage and dirty from using the same blanket for so long.
This was his life. A small room underground with little light and nobody to save him. He tried saving himself many times, but they all ended up being butchered whether his father found out, or if he happened to be extra clumsy.
"No!" his father would yell, making him flinch at the volume of his voice. "You will not leave this tomb! You can't!" The whip was raised, his eyes were wide, fearful, and he would scream as it came crashing down upon his back, his face, his arms that were thrown protectively in front of his body. Blood would fall, always. And then he would cry before being thrown and locked into his room. He would beat the door, begging to be let out, for forgiveness from his father. He would scream until his voice was hoarse, beat until his knuckles bled.
Please, please. I didn't mean it. I just wanted to go outside. Please, please. I'm sorry, I'm sorry.
It was all ignored. His words were never acknowledged, just spat upon and thrown away like heaps of trash.
And so he sat in his room, curled up on his bed, his face buried into his knees, his arms wrapped around to help fight off the chill that bit at him, and he would cry.
Daddy, I'm sorry. Please, please don't punish me. I'm sorry. I just wanted to see the sun. Just once.
He was hungry, only receiving food when it was brought to him by some random servant. His older sister and older half-brother were not allowed to make contact with him during his punishment, so his door was slid open where a bowl of soup was shoved in before the door was slammed shut and locked.
He gulped down the soup, savoring every taste, every bit of vegetable, everything it contained. His stomach growled for more, but there was no more and the bowl was discarded before he returned to his bed to sit there and stare at the wall and pray that his father would be merciful and release him.
There was no sound. Nothing to assure him that he wasn't alone. He was locked up for so long, speaking and voices were foreign. He didn't remember what his sister sounded like, what his brother's raspy laugh was like, what their smiling faces and comforting words were.
It was all being erased.
How long had he been here? It felt like years. He wanted to die. This was so lonesome. He couldn't stand it anymore.
He gripped at the sides of the ragged clothing he wore and the tears fell. "I want to die," he whispered, shocked at how croaky his own voice sounded. How long had it been since he'd talked? "Please. Someone, just kill me. God, kill me."
And then he came.
The door was not opened, it didn't creak to signify his entry, it was as if he simply walked through the wall and was there, standing taller than him and giving him a bit of a mischievous smile, crossing his arms in a boyish way.
He jumped, scrambling to the back of his bed and hitting the wall behind him. "Who are you?" he croaked.
The older boy smiled and scratched at his tall, spiky blonde hair. "A friend." Still smiling in that boyish and kiddy way, he walked toward the bed and plopped down, smiling at him.
He was still glued to the wall. Was this a ghost? The boy did walk through the wall. Maybe he was some sort of vengeful spirit here to kill him. He did live in a tomb after all. Was he here to punish him for trying to escape? "Why are you here?" His voice was returning, gathering strength from usage.
The boy shrugged and stared off into space. "It's no fun being lonely." The impish smile disappeared and his face drooped in sadness. "I can understand how you feel." He looked back at him, smiling again. "Wanna be friends?"
He was appalled, he couldn't think of a coherent answer. How were you supposed to answer a question like that to someone you didn't even know? "What's your name?" He might as well get to know him. He didn't appear evil or anything. Even if he was a ghost, it was...kinda nice to have someone here after being alone for so long, so nice to finally use his voice for something other than screaming and wailing.
"Mariku. Yours?"
"Malik."
He laughed, creating echoes off the wall that bounced in every direction. The laugh was innocent, childish, carefree. "That's cool. They almost sound alike, don't they?"
"Yeah." His lips were twitching. Was he...smiling?
"What are you doing in a place like this?"
He eased away from the wall until he was somewhat next to the boy, still being wary of his sudden and strange appearance. "Daddy is punishing me."
He looked confused, as if he didn't expect someone like him to be capable of wrongdoing. "What'd you do?"
"I tried leaving here." He stared off into space, much like Mariku had done moments ago, his imagination running away with him. "I...I saw pictures of the outside from some of my books and I wanted to see the sun." A wide grin grew on his face. "It looked so pretty and bright. I wanted to see it so bad, and to feel the wind blow, and to hear the sounds of the outside world." His face fell and tears sprang forth as he remembered how badly his father had beaten him. "But...daddy caught me while I was trying to go to the surface and he whipped me." The pain was still there, still stinging from memory and his tears clouded his eyes. "It hurt so much."
Mariku looked appalled, like he couldn't believe Malik had to go through something like that, and then he looked angry, balling his hands into fists. His nails dug into his hand until there were the smallest droplets of blood and he gritted his teeth, grinding them and letting out hisses of anger. His hand relaxed after awhile and he took a breath before calmly looking back at Malik and asking, "Can...I see?"
The two boys stared at teach other for awhile, the only sounds in the room being the small pants of their breathing. "Okay."
He turned his back on Mariku, grabbing the hem of his rags and rolling it up to his shoulders until his bare back was revealed. He craned his neck to look behind him and even in the dim light, he could see the darkened areas where dried blood coated them, having not been washed since he was confined.
Mariku breathed heavily and let out a low growl, causing Malik to flinch and drop his rags, whirling around to face him. He was a little frightened of this boy, by the sounds he could make, they were almost animalistic.
But, his face looked genuinely concerned and kind. He reached forward and touched Malik's bare shoulder, rubbing his hand up and down it. "Can I...take the pain away?"
Malik really was confused now. The boy's touch was real, so that drowned his earlier thought of him being a ghost, but...could he really take away the pain, the scars? "Can you?"
His smile returned. "I can. If you'll let me."
He didn't know what to say. It sounded weird and completely absurd, but...this boy looked so sure of himself. It wouldn't hurt to give him a chance, even if he was a bit strange. "Okay."
He turned around again, giving Mariku full view of his back, and the older boy's fingers were all over him, massaging the skin, rubbing his sore spots, soothing the pain. He tickled him all around, causing him to giggle a couple of times at the tingly feeling, and Mariku laughed too, enjoying the sounds of the younger boy's giggles.
The pain was going away. The more Mariku touched him, the more the dull throbbing pain would cease. He would tease him some, rubbing a sore spot and causing it to sting a little, but then drawing tiny circles around it to make him laugh, as if in apology.
"Does it feel better?" Mariku asked, his hands still spinning webs and drawing things onto Malik's back.
Malik nodded, smiling as Mariku tickled him some more, sliding his finger over a sensitive area every now and then to make him ignore the sting.
"Do you feel better?"
Malik turned to him when he no longer felt his hands on his back and gave him a wide smile. "Yes! It feels much better!"
Mariku gave a small smile. "I'm glad." He turned away again before standing up, now towering a good head over Malik who was still seated on the bed. "Maybe I should go."
Malik's face fell. "...Why?" He didn't know why he sounded so sad and disappointed. He literally didn't know a thing about this boy, save for his name, but the thought of being lonely again tore at him and made him feel sick. His hand reached out to nab at the older boy's strange clothing and his fingers gripped the harsh material of his pants. "D...don't go."
Mariku looked back at him and his shoulders drooped with sadness. "I'm sorry, Malik, but I have to go. At least I was able to dull the pain on your back, but I can't stay."
He wanted to cry. He'd finally been graced with human (or whatever this boy was) contact and now it was being ripped away from him again. "Don't go. Don't go." He was off the bed and on his knees, grabbing onto the boy's pants and squeezing, burying his face into the clothing and crying, soaking the jeans. "Please, please don't go. Don't leave me alone." He cried harder.
Mariku's fingers raked through Malik's blonde hair and he gave a sad chuckle. "I'm sorry, but...can I ask you something before I go?"
Malik lifted his tear-streaked face up, eyes bloodshot from crying and he nodded, throat constricting his voice too much for him to give a verbal response.
Mariku's eyes trailed away from him and settled on the bookshelf before he asked in a shaky voice, "C-can...can I...keep you?"
Malik didn't understand. He stared up at the older boy, his violet eyes brimming with ignorance and innocence. Of course he couldn't comprehend what Mariku was telling him, but his answer came out and he barely realized it. "Yes."
Mariku seemed happy about this. He gently took hold of Malik's shoulders and lifted him off the ground, wrapping his long arms around his neck and pulling him close. "I won't be gone forever. Now that you're mine, I'll come back. I promise."
Malik returned the hug, allowing his fingers to caress the boy's smooth and thin back. His platinum hair was longer than he thought, so his fingers were running through it and he reveled in the silky feel of it. "You promise? When will you be back?"
Mariku pulled away from him and walked toward the door, not turning back to face him. "Wherever you go, wherever you are, no matter how old you get, who you are with, I'll be with you." He walked back through the door and Malik burst forward, beating on the door, not wanting the older one to leave.
"Mariku!" The tears were returning and he beat harder. "Mariku, don't leave, please!" The tips of his knuckles were growing raw from beating and they began to bleed. "Mariku!"
Only silence was his answer, his familiar answer to everything and he sank to the floor, massaging his sore hands before the tears pooled out.
***
How long had it been? It felt like forever since he'd been down in that tomb, tired and hungry, alone and weak, begging for release.
His father had finally passed, dying from a heart attack or something along those lines, and he'd been released from his room.
He was grown now and was free. He was finally doing what he'd always dreamed of: Experiencing the outside world and relishing in all its glory.
He had friends now, he attended school, he lived in a house with his brother and sister, and life couldn't have been sweeter. He enjoyed his new life now, savored every second of it, laughed every chance he got, and pushed away any sad thoughts to make more time for happier ones.
Still, that one memory lingered and clung to him, like a stain on a shirt. It wouldn't leave and he couldn't wash it away, no matter how hard he tried.
Mariku had not returned since all those years ago. He had almost forgotten about him, having enjoyed his newly freed life and friends, but the taller boy always stayed hidden in the back of his mind, straying forth every once in awhile and he wondered. Wondered what had become of his strange visitor all that time ago.
He was in his room one night, sitting at his desk, a textbook flapped open and he was beating his brain, trying to concentrate on the words in front of him, but it was futile. His mind would wander and when he was supposed to be writing and answering questions on his paper, there would be a little drawing of some sort, something he found himself doing more and more absentmindedly nowadays.
"Malik?"
The voice was deep and he assumed it to be his older half-brother, but when he didn't turn around to face the voice and a hand grabbed his shoulder, he jumped and whirled around to face someone he thought he'd never see.
"Mariku?" His eyes were lit up with shock and happiness. There was no doubt about it. Even the years that had aged Mariku couldn't hide him from Malik. He'd recognize him anywhere.
Mariku smiled, his hair now twice as long and twice as spiky, and he was even more taller than Malik now.
As the younger one stared at him , too happy to say anything, Mariku ran his long fingers along Malik's back, tickling the sensitive spots. "Does it still hurt?"
Malik shook his head. "No. It stopped hurting a long time ago."
Mariku nodded. "Good." He crossed his arms and arched his eyebrows at Malik, something that looked uncharacteristic for him, but Malik supposed he could have his kidding moments. "Well?" he asked, tapping his finger against his arm as if impatient with the younger boy.
"Well...what?"
"I haven't seen you in years and you greet me by staring at me like I'm a ghost or something." He huffed in a joking manner and turned his head.
Malik laughed and stood up, wrapping his arms around the older one's broad shoulders. He was so much taller though, so Malik had to stand on the tips of his toes. "I'm so glad you're back." He leaned the side of his head against Mariku's arm. "Mariku..." He turned his head to bury it in the boy's sleeve. "Thank you...thank you for everything."
Mariku returned the hug. "You don't even have to say anything." He lifted Malik's chin up and bent down, kissing the younger boy. "I said I'd always be with you. I meant it."
Malik kissed him back. "I'm glad."
End