Hi everybody! Sorry it has been a awhile since my last entry, I have been on vacation for two weeks. But neither here nor there, I have completed another JxS piece, just for you.
I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! GX or anything of the sort. Just sit back and relax and enjoy
P.S. it helps to listen to Heaven by D.J. Sammy. That's where I got my inspiration.
An early afternoon gust swept up the quick flight of stairs at the Slifer Red dormitory, signaling the approach of night. The sun was setting off in the distance, casting the dorm in its final glow before the shroud of darkness covered all. It was the end of another day at Duelist Academy, but to one teen in particular, it felt as if the world around him had come to a complete stop.
The shaking boy stood outside the first dorm room on the second floor of the dormitory he had come to know intimately. His breathing was heavy with concern. But what compelled him more to be inside the dorm with the resident inside was something far deeper.
Syrus Trusdale stared blankly at the door in front of him, wanting so bad to go inside and comfort the person he knew was inside. A small trail of tears began to fall down his delicate face and to the cracked cement walkway. He raised his hand to the doorknob, but left it there hovering, still unsure of what he should do. "Jaden…." the hurting teen whispered to the door in front of him, hoping that the aforementioned person would open it and let him in to comfort him.
Syrus only cared about nurturing the hurt brunette beyond the door in any way he could, that he didn't even notice that he was being watched. Calculating, analyzing grey eyes watched from one floor under him for a few moments before walking back into the dorm just below Syrus. the Ra Yellow duelist in question was Bastion. The duelist returned to the group that had gathered in the dorm room on the ground floor. He faced the group of teens whose eyes fell on him for an explanation.
"He hasn't moved from that spot for almost half an hour." Bastion stated. The group exhaled, lacking any sort of solution to the problem they were facing. Just today, the one person they all considered a good friend, Jaden Yuki, was defeated in a duel against the pro league duelist, and visitor to Duelist Academy, Ed Phoenix. This wasn't the first time the teen had been beaten in a duel, but nobody had ever in their wildest imagination could have predicted how he would react. Shortly after his loss, Jaden fainted on the duel arena, his cards all scattered from his duel disk.
At that moment, all of those who witnessed the match ran to the fallen teen's aid. Soon after, he was carried to the health clinic. The group of teens waited patiently for an analysis on the teen's condition. After about fifteen minutes of careful observation by the head nurse and nutrition, Jaden was declared healthy. But everyone present knew better. That loss had done something to him. He kept swearing that his cards appeared blank. The images on his cards, he claimed, were gone and were replaced with a white nothingness. But the funny thing was, all of his cards were normal, at least that's what everybody else said. Plus, in his more personal moments, Jaden felt he had lost touch with the monster spirits he had grown to trust and call his own personal guardians.
For whatever reason, the brunette was devastated, his eyes that were so normally full of life, were dead and showed no sign of light or had that fire in them that made him duel in the first place. In many respects, he lost the will to fight, and many feared, the will to live.
None were more concerned for the brunette than the teens that sat and discussed the situation openly. Alexis Rose, an Obelisk Blue duelist, pondered what he meant when he said that his cards were blank, when in fact the images were quite clear. Chazz Princeton, another Obelisk duelist, sat next to Alexis, his thoughts a little more askew from the general problem at hand. He wondered why he cared at all for Jaden, a Slifer duelist of all things. For whatever reason, he cared about what was happening to him, and it drove him crazy. Bastion stared at Kenzan, both Ra yellow duelists, each trying to read the other's concerns. Bastion actually was pondering what Kenzan could be going through. The darker, dino duelist had a crush on Jaden, everyone knew this, which also drew him into a constant conflict with the last member of the group that had left them a half an hour ago, Syrus Trusdale.
"I can't stand this, Aniki needs me." Kenzan raised himself from the cushioned seat and began to walk out of the room to the top floor. What he had in mind was a little more drastic than what the others had considered. He was planning on busting the door down and embracing the fallen duelist until he had regained that spark that Kenzan admired the most. A quick hand stopped the determined duelist from taking another rash step. "Hold on." Bastion interceded. Kenzan passed him a quick glare, asking for passage. "Now's not a good time." The brunette said plainly. "I don't think your rash actions would benefit Jaden. Especially Syrus." "So what? My Aniki needs me." Kenzan retorted. Alexis quickly jumped in the argument.
"Come on Kenzan, I think it is blatantly obvious to everyone here that Syrus cares about Jaden the most. I mean, who was the first one by his side when he fainted? Who fought a crowd of older duelists to get to him in the health clinic? This whole thing is killing him inside. In fact, I think he's more devastated than Jaden is." Alexis's voice began to settle, thinking about what to do, not only about Jaden but Syrus as well. Bastion nodded solemnly. "He cares for Jaden, more so than any of us here." everyone looked at the Ra yellow duelist who spoke out loud and nodded in agreement. Kenzan however was not convinced. Bastion looked at the impatient teen with a serious glare before continuing. "Leave him be. Now's not the time for your rivalry with Syrus. let him be with Jaden, its what he truly wants. Who knows, maybe he is the only one who can bring Jaden back."
The group listened to the duelist's proposal and they all silently agreed. Kenzan saw that he was not going anywhere near Jaden now, the teens that stood before him wouldn't let him. "Whatever." The defeated Kenzan fumed before sitting down next to Alexis with his arms crossed. He passed a quick glance over at the still silent Chazz, who still had his head bent, resting in his hands. Kenzan's anger with the "unfair" ruling of the group began to fade when he saw Chazz's lips move in silent speech with his eyes closed. 'Is he praying?' Kenzan thought to himself. This was highly unusual for the Obelisk duelist. Nobody suspected he had any sort of faith at all. This may have been an after effect of knowing Jaden, Kenzan thought. Jaden gave the loner Chazz Princeton something to believe in, their friendship, and it seemed that that was something Chazz secretly treasured. It was the same for all of them. Jaden gave each of them something to treasure, something that they all feared they would lose now.
Realizing just how much Jaden meant to, not only himself, but to the rest of the group, Kenzan came to terms with the fact that Bastion may have been right. Syrus may be the only one who can bring Jaden back, and if he could, Kenzan would support that. He may have been a bit dense, but Kenzan was not blind. He saw how much Jaden cared about Syrus, and how much more Syrus cared about Jaden. The smaller boy was constantly by Jaden's side, ready to help him fight or to support him no matter how dangerous the opponent or situation was.
Docile by nature, the smaller teen was willing to fight for his Aniki. 'He was even willing to fight me….just for Jaden.' Kenzan recalled. That same week that Kenzan had joined the school and had become part of Jaden's entourage, despite his overwhelming height and build compared to the weaker Syrus, the smaller teen still stood up to him, and issued a bold challenge to stay away from, as he put it "his Aniki".
'Maybe he can help Jaden.' Kenzan thought heavily. And so with a heavy sigh, he clapped his hands together and silently wished, 'Syrus, please help Aniki.'
Outside, away from the other concerned teens, Syrus still stood a breath's distance away from the door that hid his beloved from him. It had been tearing him apart. He had never been separated from Jaden this long, but at the same time, he wanted to respect the brunette's request some time ago to be left alone. 'He told us…told me to leave him alone. But, but how long? I can't take this anymore, Aniki…'
It was true that Jaden had asked to be left alone. he spent the rest of the day hidden away in his dorm room. 'I need to be alone right now Sy.' The last words he spoke to the bluenette were the hardest to bear. Syrus spent the rest of the day with the group of teens just below him, trying to figure out why Jaden had been acting so strange, but more importantly discussing how to help him. Syrus sat in a fetal position, away from the rest of the debating teens and thought about Jaden, that beautiful smile that he feared he would never see again. his concentration had been broken just enough when Chazz decided to speak. "Maybe Jaden will never be normal again." the proud duelist said. It was a devastating possibility to hear, especially to the young Syrus, but it was something that may become just that, a possibility.
Syrus glared at the taller boy and instantly jumped to his feet. "You're wrong! Jaden will be fine! You'll see, I…I won't lose him like this." the teen's outburst shocked everyone present, except for Kenzan. He knew what the smaller boy was going through. He would've said the same thing. "Sy, I think we have to consider the possibility that Jaden may never be the same again." Alexis tried to calm the teen down by offering a friendly hand over his shoulder. With a fresh trail of tears again staining his delicate face, Syrus pushed her away. "You don't know what you're talking about!" he yelled at her. Alexis stood back, shocked at the boy's response to her gesture. Syrus looked around the room at everyone, tears hazing his vision. "I…I have to see him." with that being his final words to the group, Syrus rushed out of the dorm room, water droplets falling from his eyes and onto the carpet, and quickly up the flight of stairs where he had been ever since.
The smaller teen loved Jaden, without question. He would do anything to make his brunette happy, anything. But this, this was too much. He didn't know if Jaden was even still in his room after all this time. Still, he hovered over the door knob, his heart beating faster and faster, threatening to jump out of his chest. The emptiness he felt without Jaden was simply unbearable now. He needed to know if Jaden was okay.
'Jaden, don't hate me.' The teen thought bitterly as he laid his hand over the knob and immediately twisted it clockwise. The knob made a few minor squeaks, which was normal considering it was the Slifer dormitory. With one more quick breath, the teen slightly pushed the free standing door ajar.
Another cold brush of wind traveled up the teen's spine, chilling him, making him want to feel the warmth of his Aniki even more. What he could see, especially because it had already grown dark with the evening night shroud, was just the silhouette of the dorm beds and the dorm desk area. His eyes had to squint in order to see better. His heart beat faster as he took one hesitant step into the room. "Jaden…" Syrus whispered quietly. "Jaden, are you here?" the teen said into the dark room. With an uneasy hand, he searched for the light switch to the dorm. Lucky, because he knew the dorm very well, he found it very quickly. With a simple gesture of his finger, the switch was flipped and soon the lights above his head began to spark life. Soon, the room began to fill with the luminescent glow of the dying light bulbs. The shadows Syrus once saw all began to retreat.
"Jaden….!" the boy laid his silver eyes on the figure over near the open window, hunched over on the floor. Jaden brought his knees up to his chest at the sound of his friend's voice. "Jaden?" Syrus pleaded as he walked into the room. Jaden had not responded to the boy at all, making Syrus worry even more. Syrus took another uneasy step over to his dearest brunette, his heart still heavy with concern and his eyes still wet from the tears he shed for him.
Syrus stopped dead in his tracks when the floor again moaned under his movements, weary from years of use without proper conditioning. "Jaden….?" finally, the fallen boy lifted his head from his knees slowly. His russet hair falling over his eyes, Jaden greeted his visitor with an empty stare and indifferent frown. A small tear began to run down his cheek to his chin and finally down to the floor.
Syrus's once confused expression quickly faded once he saw his beloved cry. Without any thought to justify his actions, the smaller boy ran the few steps between the two boys, fell to his knees and scooped Jaden into his open arms. A quick rustle of the two boys' blazers was all that was heard. A silent gust of wind swept through the room from the open window, closing the door behind the aqua-haired boy.
Syrus blushed slightly, knowing he had no excuse to give his beloved should he inquire why he did what he did. No words were exchanged between the two boys, nothing at all. Syrus tightened his protective grip on his Jaden, simply asking for him to do the same. He breathed in the taller boy's scent. He smelt of that sharp scent of cedar and some sort of sweet spice that sent the smaller boy into a quick fantasy.
"Jaden, what's wrong?" Syrus asked, desperately wanting to know. Jaden did not respond to his question, he just sat in silent paralysis. The only answer he gave was a grieving chest that rose and fell in heavy sighs. "Please Jaden….tell me. I need to know…" Syrus pleaded. He released Jaden from his embrace to look at him in the eyes. Syrus stared long and hard into the dark chocolate orbs he had fallen for.
Still without answering, Jaden looked away from his worried companion, not wanting him to see the sad state that he had been in. "Aniki, look at me." Jaden listened but did not respond. Syrus inched closer to his brunette, his face beginning to turn a smaller shade of pink. "Please…" he pleaded with a whisper. The aqua-haired teen raised his hand under Jaden's chin and slowly brought his gaze back to face him. "Jaden…what happened to you? Please, why won't you tell me?" another tear rolled down Jaden's tanned face. Syrus gently wiped it away with his thumb, he beginning to cry harder himself.
With the tear gone, Syrus bent back down to bring his Aniki back into his arms, bringing Jaden into his body tightly, like he was making up for lost time between them. Syrus laid his chin gently on Jaden's shoulder, venting his sorrow on his blazer. Jaden rested his chin over Syrus's left shoulder, his wild hair brushing against his face.
Syrus made an attempt to deepen the embrace by wrapping his arms from around Jaden's neck, under his arms and hooked around his shoulder blades. Syrus's tears soon began to fall on the tan boy's neck. He had always wanted his first passionate embrace with Jaden to be joyous, not like this. But he was happy, nonetheless, that he could at least be close enough to hold him again.
"Aniki…I won't leave you. I know you wanted to be alone, and I'm sorry for barging in, but I couldn't stand it anymore. I had to see you again." still no answer from the brunette. Syrus pushed his body into Jaden, his knees coming to rest in between Jaden open legs. "Please Jaden, speak to me. Tell me what's bothering you, tell me how I can help." He pleaded one more time.
Jaden just stared at the sight before him. his friend that he had known since the very first day he came to Duel Academy, was now holding him and….crying over him. Words it seemed would not be enough to break the coma-like state the taller teen had fallen into. But now, his smaller friend threw himself at him, desperate to help him. Past the tears was a devotion, and a love that Jaden simply could not ignore.
"S-Sy?" as if woken from a deep dream, the brunette called to the other that held him close. Syrus broke the bond he created to look at Jaden. "Jaden!" the bluenette cheered. The smaller teen smiled as best as he could, regardless of the turmoil he had been through. Jaden suddenly lifted his lifeless arms from his sides and passionately wrapped them around the smaller teen and pulled him back into the embrace. Syrus gleefully returned the brunette's hug.
"Jaden, I'm so happy you're okay. I was so worried about you." overcome by joy that the once silenced Jaden had finally begun speaking again, Syrus almost let too much information slip.
"Sy, I'm not okay." The brunette pointed out. Syrus pulled back a second time to face his beloved face to face again. 'His eyes, he still doesn't have that spark.' Syrus could easily grasp the fact that Jaden was still far from okay just by seeing the emptiness that still lingered in his eyes. "I, still can't see my cards. They're all white." Again the brunette swore that his cards had been wiped clean of any images and now were as blank as a piece pf paper. Syrus let Jaden go and looked around the room for the brunette's deck. He quickly found it on top of the desk that the brunette had taken refuge near. Syrus scanned through the entire deck and still could not find anything wrong with any of the cards. He bent down next to Jaden and held one card up to the brunette's stare. It was Hane Kuriboh, Jaden's favorite monster.
"Jaden, can you tell me what monster this is?" Syrus tried desperately to help his Aniki, praying silently that he would respond in the way he wanted. Jaden stared long and hard at the card, and he quickly grew frustrated. His eyes began to water and his head began to shake. Syrus quickly withdrew the card from his view, seeing that he was growing upset with the whole thing. Syrus let the entire deck fall from his grasp to the floor, allowing his free hands to embrace his hurting brunette again. This time, Syrus buried his hands in Jaden's wild hair as he pulled the brunette closer to him. Jaden began to shed more tears of angst against the supportive body that held him.
Syrus laid his head over Jaden's shoulder and gently leaned into him, burying his face in the golden brown locks. He marveled at how soft his hair was against his cheek. Through a tear stained face, Syrus breathed in sharply, catching the sweet the scent of the brunette. 'My poor Jaden.' the bluenette thought, nuzzling further.
The bluenette couldn't help but feel ashamed of himself. He was taking advantage of the whole situation just to be close to Jaden, just to hold like this, just like he had in his dreams. He knew he could never get away with this if Jaden had been in the right mind. Although he wished his confession to the brunette would help him in some profound way, he knew that telling Jaden he loved him would only complicate the situation, so he bottled up his rampant emotions and focused on how to make Jaden happy again.
"Sy, I can't see them. They're all gone. I don't know what to do." The brunette cried openly, bringing the smaller boy that held him to reexamine him. Syrus brought his gaze back to the weeping brunette, his hands releasing the soft hair they held seconds before. "Jaden…." the smaller boy could not form any words that he felt would help his idol feel better. Syrus trusted Jaden completely, he knew he would not lie to him. If Jaden said that his cards were blank, then Syrus believed it too. He just wished….wished with all his heart he had an answer.
The two boys just stared at each other, no words at all were spoken. Syrus desperately searched for that light that he knew was still there inside the brunette, while Jaden saw the hurt inside his smaller friend, the pain he knew he put there. He hurt Syrus, he didn't know how, but he could see it in his mercury eyes. Seconds turned into minutes and the boys still had not uttered a word to one another, all they needed to know about each other was written in their eyes.
'It's not fair that Sy has to suffer because of me.' The brunette concluded. 'I won't give up on you Aniki. I'll find a way to bring you back to me, I promise.' The smaller bluenette thought to himself, his hands hovering inches above Jaden's, ready to embrace them at a moments notice. Syrus could just faintly feel the heat of the taller boy's breath against his lips, forcing him to part them just slightly, still yearning for contact.
Suddenly, the two boys heard a knock at the door. Their passionate gaze was broken as they both looked at the source of the disruption. "Aniki! Are you okay?" it seemed that Kenzan had gotten past the barricade of teens that held him in place. "I'm coming in Aniki. I'll help y-…." "Kenzan! Leave them alone!" Bastion could be heard too. Somewhere amongst the chatter, there was the sound of a struggle between the two outside. "No! Aniki needs me!" Kenzan fumed. "Yeah, like a hole in the head." Chazz quipped.
Kenzan's voice began to fade, signaling the teens' success in bringing him back down to the dorm below the two boys. Once the noise had dulled, they faced each other again. Jaden gave Syrus a quick smile, remembering his place in their relationship. He was supposed to be the strong one, the one that the younger Syrus depended on for support and confidence. But here he was, being held together by the strong heart of his smaller friend, their roles almost completely reversed.
The taller of the two boys wiped away the tears in his eyes, smiled pleasantly at Syrus and pushed himself slowly off of the floor. Syrus eased off of his Aniki to allow him to get up. Jaden stood as confidently as he could, his knees buckling because he had been on the floor for some time now. Syrus quickly stood on his more reliable feet, helping Jaden as he fell forward. The smaller teen caught the wobbly duelist and held him upright, his knees beginning to falter under their combined weight.
The taller teen didn't have a lot of energy, since he had not eaten all day. So, out of biological response, his body began to slow down. His eyes gently drifted shut. "Sy…I'm…so ….tired." his head gently laid against Syrus's shoulder.
"Thanks Sy." The taller of the teens whispered to his companion. Syrus clung to his sweetheart protectively, tears still rolling down his face. "Don't mention it." the smaller teen answered, his knees still struggling to keep them both up. Syrus knew deep down that he needed to be strong for his Aniki, now more than ever.
Despite his desire to help his brunette out of this rut he had fallen into, he couldn't shake the obvious feeling of fulfillment that he got just holding him like this.
The smaller teen was torn between two opposing emotions. He wanted more than anything to help Jaden back to his normal self, the self he had fallen in love with. But at the same time he also had to wonder when if ever again Jaden would depend on him like this. it was an overwhelming feeling to keep his usually strong and vibrant brunette in his arms now, and to be completely honest he didn't want it to end.
"I love you Aniki" the teen whispered, unable to be heard by the slumbering brunette he held.
Slowly but surely, he led the taller duelist back to his bunk bed where he gently laid him on his back. Jaden took a quick intake of breath before turning to his side and curling into a small ball.
Wasting no time, Syrus shed his blazer off his shoulders, letting it fall to the floor, and he crawled into the bed next to Jaden. The springs in the mattress groaned with new life as the aqua-haired teen made his place next to the slumbering Jaden.
Syrus pulled the comforter over both of them, preparing to spend the remainder of the day with his brunette just as he had wanted to despite the direct order he was given not to.
Syrus snuggled closer to Jaden, their bodies a mere inch apart. "I won't leave you Jaden. I'll be here when you wake up…and we'll figure something out…" his eyes fell from the angelic face in front of him to the brunette's free hand that laid lazily next to him. Syrus easily took their hands together, sharing the mutual warmth between the two of them. "….together."
And with his final words spoken, Syrus pushed closer to the sleeping brunette, the grasp he had over his hand tightening. The boy took one final breath before he laid a chaste kiss over Jaden's lips.
A stray tear fell from Syrus's eye down to the mattress beneath them. After a few more moments of his contact, Syrus pulled away from Jaden only to close the short distance between their bodies, pushing his hips deeper into the body next to him.
"I'll find a way to bring you back to me Jaden." Syrus confessed to the oblivious Jaden. the smaller teen wrapped his free arm around Jaden's waist and gently pulled him closer so as not to disturb him.
The brunette turned in his sleep, one word managing to escape his unconscious lips, "Sy…"
At the sound of his name, Syrus laid his head in a tight niche under Jaden's chin, trying his best to feel more of the teen he held close. "I'm here Jaden. I won't leave you alone, even if you ask me to." The teen flinched from the sharp pain he felt in his chest, longing for his brunette to return to the way he was. "I love you." he said finally, gently pressing his lips against Jaden's lips again.
The sun had finally set behind the horizon, the moon now in full shine. All was silent and all was pure in the light of the white pearl in the sky.
Slowly, that same light found its way into the slifer dormitory. There, in the pale light of the moon, the two teens slept together for all to see. Though hardship created a rift for them both to overcome, somehow, some way, love would give them both what they wanted.
Now I'm not sure if I should make another chapter after this or just end it here because we all know how it ends. What do you think?