The rain that evening drowned out most of the background noises of Domino City. Occasionally, Yugi would look up from his notes on the coffee table in front of him, his head cocked to the side with interest as he strained to hear. A few times, when he thought he heard the door open, he would tense and prepare to spring out of his chair to launch himself at his roommate. Every time, though, it ended up being a false alarm; the sound was either a knocked over trashcan in an alley or a shout from someone passing by. He never heard the sound of a key turning in a lock; the sound that meant his best friend was home for the evening.

Yugi frowned and looked at the watch on his wrist. Even though his roommate should have been home by now, there was no point in getting worked up about it. The museum had only officially closed half an hour ago – maybe there had been some extra errands which made the closing shift longer. It was certainly a possibility. Yugi sighed and tried to solve the equations in front of him. The exam was tomorrow, and he didn't think that he was going to do very well. He just couldn't focus on studying any longer, not without knowing where Yami was.

Finally, Yugi heard the sound of shuffling from outside the door. Yugi looked up, halfway out of his seat already, and then grinned when the door swung inwards to reveal Yami. He sprang off of the couch and raced to his friend.

"How was work? You were supposed to be home an hour ago," he said, unable to keep the slight annoyance out of his tone.

Yami chuckled to himself and hung up his jacket on the hook by the door. It was only then that Yugi realized he was soaking wet.

"Sorry, the public transit was closed and so I had to walk the four blocks. Of course, I left my thicker coat here since it was sunny when I left."

Yugi frowned and Yami could tell he was resisting the urge to use a word he wouldn't normally use. Yami laughed and kicked off his soaked boots before walking any further into their small apartment. He headed for the kitchen and Yugi followed him. It always amused him how similar Yugi was to a small housebound pet—like a dog excited to see his master. Of course, Yami wouldn't ever say that aloud. But the thought did make him smile.

"The exhibit was good," Yami spoke, his head in the refrigerator. Yugi could hear the other young man's smile when he said "Ancient Egypt seems to hold an appeal for people—I can't imagine why." He closed the fridge door, milk in hand. "How was the studying?"

"Yeah, about that..." Yugi said, refusing to make eye contact even when Yami poured his cereal.

"You didn't actually get anything done, did you?" Yami asked, his mouth full of cereal.

Yugi shook his head. He wouldn't admit that it was all because he was waiting for Yami to get home. And now that his friend was here, all he wanted was to play video games or watch TV. He looked at the clock. It was almost midnight.

"Well if I don't know it now, I guess I'll never understand it. There's no point in studying anymore." Yugi sighed, accepting defeat.

A train rattled by on tracks less than a hundred yards from their apartment. The thin walls seemed to shake, but it was an annoyance they were getting used to.

Yami nodded. "My thoughts exactly." He cracked an easy smile, "Well, come on then." Carefully holding his bowl and spoon, he sat down on the couch.

Yugi pushed his mess of notes onto the floor and sat next to Yami on the couch. He slid his short legs up onto the empty cushion space on his left and leaned against Yami on his right. Yami ate another spoonful of cereal and lifted the remote.

"What do you want to watch? You know I have this great program recorded. It's about a card game called Black Jack. Apparently, people actually wager money..."

Yugi wanted to stay awake with Yami because all the time that they could spend together was worth something—during the day, Yugi was attending his college classes and in the evening Yami worked long shifts. But staying up to wait for Yami, especially during the stress of exams, was starting to take its toll.

Yugi tried to pay attention but he felt himself dozing off at the sound of Yami's voice echoing in his chest, and the feeling of his head against fabric still slightly damp from the rain.

Yami looked down and saw Yugi's peaceful face, his eyes closed. At least he had tried to stay awake.

Yami smiled and turned down the volume, surfing aimlessly through the channels. He didn't mind that Yugi was asleep; he was just happy to have some company.

author's note:

I wrote this while hiding from my own exams. My first Yu-Gi-Oh fanfic as you can probably tell.

Yay ~platonic~ puzzleshipping! Please review if you want; I just kind of intended this to be cute and pointless but I hope you liked it.