Looking back at the start of their journey, Yugi found it hard to believe that he was once scared of his darkness. His Yami.
Even if Yugi knew the spirit's real name, he was still Yugi's Yami. That would not change no matter how important the name was to the Pharaoh. The names 'Atem' and 'Yami' held different meanings in the teen's eyes.
Atem was a spirit of the Pharaoh that lived 3000 years ago.
Yami was Yugi's other half who was there for the teen since the very beginning. The one who gave him the courage to fight for what was right.
Yugi felt safe when he spoke to Yami. It felt like everything that was currently going wrong would turn out okay because he had Yami by his side. Together they were unstoppable, not even Zorc could take them down.
Yugi felt it was reasonable to fall in love with his spirit. No one would ever truly understand Yugi like his Yami. People spent a lifetime trying to achieve the connection that they shared. They balanced each other like yin and yang. They were two pieces of a puzzle that came together to form something beautiful.
And that was why when Yugi watched his partner walk through the gates leading to the afterlife, his knees buckled under the crippling weight of emotions. He barely felt it when his body collapsed onto the cold stone floor of his partner's tomb.
Regret swirled in his stomach, threatening to make him sick should he dare interrupt his mourning with even the thought of food. Sorrow weighed on his chest like an invisible cinderblock, making it hard for him to breathe without wanting to cry. It seemed like everything was going wrong and he couldn't even turn to his other half for comfort.
Yami was the love of his life and his best friend. The one who pushed him to become more than what he ever dreamed he could be. Without him, Yugi would have been nothing. Yugi felt like nothing.
Sometimes he wondered if Yami knew how much Yugi loved him. They shared a body, a mind connection, and even went into each other's soul rooms. They didn't have many secrets and usually that comforted Yugi. It didn't comfort him now though. Not when he thought about Yami leaving without even acknowledging Yugi's less than platonic feelings.
Somehow, it hurt less to think Yami was clueless.
Whether the spirit knew or not, the outcome would still be the same. Yami would still become Atem, and Atem would still leave Yugi to go where he belonged.
They say if you love something, let it go. If it comes back to you, it's yours. If it doesn't return then it was never yours, and it never will be.
Yugi was a fool to believe that Yami could ever be his.