part of the prom!verse. beware, there are mentions of rape and murder in this one-shot during the flashback towards the end of it. if you are uncomfortable with that, please skip over it. this is just a fair warning, i don't want anyone coming after me with bullshit because of something that i wrote that is pertinent to the story. but anyways, enjoy.
Closer
By: Xhibit B
.i do not own yu-gi-oh!.
Her Apple Pencil was twirled between her fingers, the knuckles of her free hand supporting the weight of her cheek. She should really be concentrating on studying for her finals, her third year of college would quickly be coming to an end soon and she'd been putting the inevitable off for long enough. Blowing a sigh, amethyst eyes glanced down at the notes she'd scribbled in the One Note application she'd downloaded. The equations were taunting her, her brows creased together as she tried to make sense of what she'd written down. If Yami wasn't away, visiting with his family, she would have asked for his help. He seemed to get her homework more than she did. It probably also helped that he took this class the semester before. She'd tried to enroll in the course when he did but found that all of the sections were full, and she'd have to wait until the Spring semester to take the class.
Another sigh escaped the tri-colour haired woman, her pencil placed down on the glass of her iPad before she was massaging her temples with both hands. Maybe she should take a break, come back to it once she'd taken a walk or something and try again. Or maybe she'd wait for Yami to return to their shared, on-campus apartment and beg him to help her. Not that she had to do much in the way of begging. One bat of her eyelashes and he was already agreeing to be of assistance. She always loved that about him, how helpful he was when she needed him to be.
The rolling chair was pushed away from the desk, her iPad locking of its own accord from nonuse after a certain amount of time as she grabbed her iPhone and made her way out of the living room; humming to the song that played currently. She'd surmised to go to the kitchen, find something to eat before going to sit on the balcony that overlooked the entire campus; catch some of the fresh, late-evening air that blew in. That always seemed to help her relax in times of stress. That and playing Duel Monsters, but she didn't have anyone to play with at the moment; so, she would settle for the next best thing.
Capturing a bottle of water from the refrigerator in her left hand and the leftover Chinese food that had been ordered earlier in the evening in the other; she popped her food in the microwave before taking a swig of the refreshing beverage. The tips of her fingers tapped lightly against the kitchen counter, the sound of the microwave running the only other noise that filled the space. Her head nodded to the music that drifted through the speakers of her headphones, softly humming the lyrics before taking another sip of her water. It'd taken years to be able to listen to this song again.
When she had to watch her mother be murdered and her body molested in front of her, this song had been playing on her iPod. For so long, it plagued her with the memories of that gruesome night, so much that every time she'd see it on any playlist, she would remove it without a second thought. This was the first time she'd listened to the song in five years.
The microwave dinged, indicating that it was finished as the lyrics to The Wind by Mariah Carey continued to play in her ears. She pulled her food from the contraption, grabbed a fork and water, then made her way to the sliding glass door that led to the balcony. She placed her food and water on the little table that was stationed beside a set of patio chairs, one of which she claimed for herself. Yūgi breathed in the fresh air as she pulled her food into her lap and popped opened the lid. There was a small smile that played across her lips as she watched the night life of college students beneath her between bites of food and sips of water. Somewhere during the time that she'd been out there, she'd finished her food, discarding the container on the patio table before she had dozed off, her music still playing softly in her ears while she was consumed by a restless sleep.
.closer.
Fifteen-year-old Yūgi Mutou smiled and waved to her best friend turned boyfriend as she stepped out of his SUV, shouldering her backpack. "That was fun, we should definitely do it again sometime. There's a new Marvel movie that's supposed to be coming out in a few weeks, we should ask the others if they want to join us and go as a group."
Sixteen-year-old Yami Sennen chuckled, putting his SUV in park. He'd be here for a while, he figured. When Yūgi started talking, she tended to not stop for a while yet as he'd come to learn over the many years, he'd known the tri-colour haired girl. It was one of many things he loved about her. "Are you talking about the new Captain America movie?"
"That's the one," Yūgi answered with glee. "I really liked the first one so the second one should be good too. Marvel has a tendency to put out extraordinary movies. Look at Ironman."
"Point taken," Yami chuckled, his hand resting on the gearshift. "We can ask the others if they want to join us tomorrow at lunch. I'll be here in the morning to take you to school."
Yūgi nodded enthusiastically before blowing him a kiss as she turned on her heel and making her way to the door of the Mutou Family home, "I'll see you tomorrow, bright and early! Call me when you make it home."
"Of course," Yami said as he watched her reach the front door. He waited until she was inside before he pulled off, heading in the direction of home. His cellphone rang a moment later, his mother's name flashing across the screen. He picked up after the fourth ring. "Yes Mom?"
"Yami, are you on your way home yet," Izumi's voice drifted through the speaker of the phone.
"I just dropped Yūgi off, I'll be home soon," Yami answered. "Is something wrong?"
"Nothing wrong, I'm just glad that I caught you before you got too close," Izumi said, he could hear the smile in her voice at the mention of his girlfriend.
Since she'd met the tri-colour haired girl when they were but children, his mother had developed an attachment to her. She was the daughter his mother had never been blessed with, just as his brother's long-term girlfriend, Mana was. And when he'd broken the news that he and Yūgi had taken their relationship from friendship to something more, he could already hear the wedding bells chiming in his mother's head. Not that he didn't mind the idea of spending the rest of his life with Yūgi. They were still very young though and had their entire lives ahead of them before they made it to that step.
"Did you need me to stop and get something," Yami asked, irking a brow as he stopped at a red light.
"Yes, actually," Izumi answered. "I forgot to grab a few things at the grocery store when I went this evening. I'll text you what I forgot on my list. If you don't mind picking them up, I would really appreciate it! I would go myself, but we are entertaining a few friends tonight that should be here soon."
"Of course, Mom, I'll get them for you," Yami answered with a smile. "Just text the list to me. I'm close to the supermarket now."
"Thank you so much, my wonderful boy," Izumi said before the line went dead.
At the same time, Yūgi had walked into her family's home, shrugging her backpack off before she removed her winter coat. She hung it in the closet as she kicked her shoes off and grabbed her backpack again.
"Mom, Dad, I'm home," Yūgi called out as she made her way into the kitchen. The TV was still on in the living room, but her father and mother were nowhere to be found. She completely missed her father's lifeless body lying on the floor in front of the couch as she passed by. "What did you make for dinner?"
When she received no answer, her brow creased. Her parents hadn't warned her that they would be going out at all. Usually they told her if they weren't going to be home if she'd been out. Blowing a sigh, the teen turned on her heel and started to make her way up the stairs where the bedrooms were. Maybe they'd turned in early for the evening.
She reached the top of the stairs, almost tripping over her little brother's baseball bat when she stepped down. A small squeak escaped her grasp as she caught her balance before glaring up at her brother's bedroom door that was slightly ajar. She could hear the TV playing the music from a movie menu loudly, grabbing the bat at the base as she stood and pushed into his room.
"Heba, you little butthole, stop leaving your baseball bat lying around," Yūgi reprimanded as she glared down at what she thought was her brother's sleeping body. She poked his side with the end of the bat. "Did you hear me? Stop leaving your…"
She stopped midsentence when his lifeless body flopped over, and she saw all of the blood. The bat clinked to the floor, her hand flying over her mouth. A crash in her parents' room made her jump and she quickly left her brother's room and ducked into her own. The small female fell to the floor before rolling beneath her bed, her hand still covering her mouth. She was thankful that her bed sat high enough off the floor that she was able to hide beneath it even though she still had her backpack on. She watched quietly as her mother ran into her bedroom, pushing the French doors closed behind her only for them to explode opened once more, knocking the woman to the floor.
Another set of feet walked into the room, the man dropping on top of her mother to pin her down with his weight. She immediately recognized him as her Science teacher, Takahiro Han, who had been fired earlier in the semester when she reported his inappropriate behaviour towards him to her parents and the administrative faculty of Domino High School. She strained to listen to what he was saying to her mother.
"She belongs to me," Takahiro said through clenched teeth. "Where. Is. She?"
"I don't know," her mother cried out, trying to fight him off.
"Don't lie to me," Takahiro demanded. "You're her mother. Now, where is she?"
Her mother caught sight of Yūgi's crying face from the corner of her eye, her voice cracking as she spoke again. She really hoped that he didn't notice her lying there, watching. "She's at a sleepover."
Her mother's howl of pain as the knife pierced her skin repeatedly brought forth more tears from Yūgi's eyes. It wasn't until her mother took her last breath that he finally stopped before the knife was discarded at his side. She watched in horror as he unbuttoned her lifeless mother's pants, pulling them and her underwear away before his own zipper followed. Yūgi squeezed her eyes shut, wishing she couldn't hear the grunts that emitted from his being as he molested her dead mother's body.
She made sure to keep as quiet as she possibly could until he finished, zipping himself up before grabbing his knife and leaving the room. She waited until she heard the front door open and slam shut before she rolled from beneath the bed, snatching her quilt from the top. She placed it over her mother's body, covering her before she shakily made her way to the window.
He was in the yard, looking to see if he could find any trace of her. She figured he hadn't believed her mother. He remained there for another five minutes before he disappeared down the street. Seeing this as her chance, Yūgi patted her jeans to make sure that her cellphone was still in her pocket before making a break for it. She had to get somewhere, where there were people. The shopping district wasn't too far away and there would be plenty of people there to help her. And so, she ran as fast as her legs would carry her.
She was almost to the shopping district when she heard someone behind her. Risking a glance over her shoulder, she shrieked in horror when she saw that it was Takahiro Han that was following her. She ran faster, willing herself to not give out. Her legs felt like jelly, like they would give out from beneath her at any given moment. She couldn't let that happen.
She continued to run until she came upon the supermarket, just as Yami walked out of the store, bags in hand. She ran straight for him, launching herself into his arms, her face a crying mess. At some point, Han had stopped following her when she got into too crowded of an area, disappearing into a dark corner unlike how she remembered it happening in the past.
Yami glanced worriedly at the female in his arms, trying to coax what had happened from her between her sobs. She'd just opened her mouth to speak when everything faded to black.
.closer.
Yūgi's eyes sprang opened and she sat up, clutching her chest. Sweat clung to her brow, her fingers wrapped so tightly in the sheets of the bed that her knuckles turned white. She wasn't sure when she'd come back inside, or if she'd come back in on her own at all. When she felt someone place a hand to her forehead, she screamed, pushing the unknown person to the floor. She could tell it was a male from the gruff 'oof' that escaped him when he fell to the floor. She risked a glance, afraid of who would be there. Relief flooded over her when she saw that it was just a very concerned looking Yami staring up at her.
"I'm so sorry," she said quietly, folding into herself.
When had she changed into her pyjamas? She could have sworn she was wearing a pair of denim shorts and a tee shirt when she'd fallen asleep outside. Yami must have changed her clothes when he brought her in to make sure that she was comfortable. He knew how much she hated sleeping in her clothes.
Yami, in the meantime, shrugged off the push off the bed he'd received from his startled girlfriend, picking himself up from the floor before he joined her on the bed again. Strong arms circled around her, pulling the tri-colour haired female into his embrace. His chin rested on the crown of her head, the pad of his thumb rubbing soothingly against the bare skin of her arm. The thump, thump, thump of his heartbeat against her ear calmed her racing heart, her fingers finding their way into the fabric of his dress shirt.
"It's fine, Yūgi," Yami assured her, glancing down at her with concerned crimson eyes. "Are you alright? I came home an hour ago and found you asleep on the balcony, so I brought you inside. Then you started thrashing around. I've been trying to wake you up for the last fifteen minutes."
Yūgi shook her head. She was far from alright. The dreams of that night were once again plaguing her. She'd thought that she left those memories behind when he'd died three years ago by Hamura Tran's hand after he'd tried to attack her again. But they were back, and she wasn't sure what she should do. The PTSD was too much to bare sometimes. Thankfully, he was always there when she needed him most. And this had been one of those times when she really needed him. She felt so small, clinging to his shirt the way that she was. She knew she shouldn't have been nearly as scared as she was. Takahiro Han was dead and gone… had been for the last three years thanks to Agent Tran. That still didn't stop the irrational fear from rearing its ugly head though.
"Yūgi, tell me what's wrong," Yami coaxed gently, his fingers brushing beneath her chin and turning her head so that she was looking up at him. "Did you have that dream again?"
She bit her lip, nodding her head. "It's like I was reliving that day all over again. I could hear my mother's screams. Smell the blood in the air. Could hear him grunting as he… as he…"
"Ssh, it's okay, Yūgi," Yami assured her as he stroked her hair. "That monster was put down that night and he can never bother you or anyone else again. I can't imagine how scared you must have been when you had to come face to face with him. And I wish that I could have done something more to keep him away from you. The last thing that I wanted was for you to have to relive that night. And him showing up has caused you to fall back into that dark place you had been after it first happened. And you had been doing so well. But we're going to pull through this, me and you. I told you, no matter what, I would always be here for you when you had one of your episodes and I plan to keep that promise, even if we have to stay up all night because you can't get back to sleep. You're not in this alone. You can lean on me."
"I know, and I'm so thankful that you're here," Yūgi said, her fingers loosening their hold on his shirt. "I probably wouldn't be able to deal with this alone. I doubt I would have even been able to leave Grandpa's side to come to University if it wasn't for you. You've definitely been a lifesaver for me, in many different ways. There's no telling what I would have done right after that incident if it hadn't been for you."
"Don't talk like that, Yūgi," Yami coaxed, his hand moving from her shoulder to her loose hair as he held her tighter to his chest. "Just relax, you had a horrible dream about something that happened in the past. That monster was put down for good. You don't have to worry about it anymore. And you don't have to go through any of this alone. If you ever feel the need to talk about anything, you know that you can come to me. Listening is one of my best qualities, is it not?"
Yūgi nodded, a soft giggle escaping her grasp as she snuggled deeper into his embrace. "Thanks, Yami, I appreciate that so much." She could feel his lips press against her forehead as she continued to remain in his lap. A comfortable silence washed over them as she continued to listen to the thump, thump, thump of his heart, the sound lulling her into a state of sleepiness. She yawned, before taking a deep breath. "I think I'm ready to go to sleep now. And tomorrow, if you don't mind. Could you please help me with my math homework? I was trying to figure out those equations and couldn't understand it for the life of me."
Yami chuckled as he shifted his girlfriend so that he was able to place her on her side of their bed. She snuggled beneath the blankets as he pulled them up over her shoulders, before kissing her on the forehead. "Sleep tight, Yūgi. I'll see you in the morning. I've got some homework to do before I join you."
"Okay," the tri-colour haired female said sleepily. "Goodnight Yami."
He waited until she was fast asleep before he flipped off the light and left the bedroom; leaving the door slightly ajar behind him. Yūgi's amethyst eyes opened for only a moment, watching as his shadow disappeared down the hall before she turned over on her side again and fell into a restless sleep.
What felt like hours later, Yami returned to the room and crawled into bed beside her after changing into his pyjamas. The bedside lamp was turned off before his arms wrapped protectively around her, pulling the small female close. Yūgi felt safe in his arms, a small smile tugging at the sides of her mouth as her fingers intertwined with his in front of her.
.closer.
Yūgi woke the next day, alone in the large bed. Her hand reached back behind her, feeling the other side of the bed. It was cold, an indication that Yami had long since departed their bed. She yawned as she sat up and glanced at the time on her phone. She was surprised to find that it was two in the afternoon. She'd missed both of her morning classes, regrettably. She'd have to schedule a time to meet with her professors to get the work that she'd missed that morning. She couldn't afford to fall behind right now, especially with finals being so close.
Flipping the duvet back, she slipped out of bed and put on her slippers and house robe. She walked out of the bedroom, down the foyer to the main room where Yami was sitting on his laptop. He glanced up when he heard her come in.
"Look who's finally awake," Yami chuckled, closing his laptop. "Did you sleep alright? I couldn't get you up this morning for your class. When you looked up at me after I told you, you had to be in class in forty-five minutes, you waved me off then proceeded to fall back asleep. I emailed your professors and let them know what was going on and they both said they'd send your work via email this evening."
"You're on top of things," Yūgi said as she sat down beside him on the couch. Her iPad, Apple Pencil, textbook and class binder were still sitting on the desk where she'd left them the night before. "Thanks for doing that for me. Last night wasn't my night, obviously. So, I really do appreciate you taking charge and reaching out to my professors this morning for me."
"I wouldn't let you fall behind," Yami said kissing her temple before he gestured to her textbook and iPad. "Now, how about you grab your textbook and we'll get started on that Math you need help with."
Yūgi nodded, skipping over to pick up the items that she'd left on the desk before coming to sit down beside him again. She opened the textbook to the page of problems that she'd been trying to work on the night before and turned on her iPad again. "I was working on this problem when I gave up and went outside to take a break. Then of course, the dream and all that mess happened and let's just say everything I thought I remembered went flying out of my head."
Yami chuckled, placing a hand on her knee before he picked up her notebook and pencil. He glanced at the problem she'd written on her iPad before he copied it down and showed her how to work it. They worked on the problems for a good two hours together before Yūgi finally finished all of her homework, ready to submit it once she converted the file. She smiled. "Thanks for the help, Yami. Now that you explained it, I get it now. And in honour of that, we should go out and have drinks tonight after I get back from my last class of the day."
"I'm not opposed to that," Yami answered with a smile. "I should I invite Ryo, Bakura, Jou and Mai to come with us? It's been a while since we all hung out together."
"I don't see why that would be a problem," Yūgi said smiling as she stood and made her way to the bedroom again. "I'm going to go shower then head out for my lab. I'll see you tonight, okay?"
Yami nodded, wiping his hands on his jeans. "I'll see you tonight, you go get ready and I'll call the others to see if they want to join us."
"Thanks, Yami," the tri-colour haired woman said before the bedroom door closed behind her.
.closer.
Yūgi met Yami and the others at the bar that night after stopping at the apartment to change her clothes, yet again. She smiled when she spotted the group sitting at one of the larger booths further to the back of the bar. She waved back when Ryo and Mai turned to look at her, both giving her enthusiastic waves as she approached the large group.
She'd almost reached the group when someone grasped her arm in their hand. She glanced up with wide eyes, reeling back when she thought she saw her old science teacher smiling down at her. The man was talking, asking her something, but she didn't hear it. Her flight or fight responses were beginning to kick in, leaning heavily towards flight than fight. She tried to jerk away, but he held fast to her wrist; his eyes glazed over with several different emotions she was not able to clearly read.
"Let me go," Yūgi demanded, loudly. "Let me go now!"
"Ah don't be like that beautiful," the man said, grinning sickeningly at the tri-colour haired woman who continued to pull away.
She was relieved when she was pulled out of the man's grasp and held protectively against a familiar chest. His deep timbre of his voice reached her ears over the music and she immediately relaxed. The face that she'd been seeing dissolved into what it actually was, this was not Takahiro Han, thank the Gods. He looked to be around her age, maybe a year or two older than Yami who was going back and forth with the man.
"If someone says to let them go, you need to release them," Yami said, his voice carrying a warning tone. "Don't make this a habit… I would hate to have to resort to measures that are unnecessary."
"As if a skinny punk like you could ever cause me any harm," the man taunted.
Yūgi could feel Yami's muscles tensing. She knew full well what he was capable of. She'd seen him take on Takahiro when he'd chased her down to the market district that fateful night. It had been a wonder that the man had been able to get away from him after Yami had nearly pounded him to a pulp and elude the police for as long as he had. Her fingers grasped the lapels of his jacket that he was wearing, "Yami don't. Let's just go sit down with the others and enjoy our night. He's not worth it at all."
Yami nodded, glancing down at her before they turned away, but not before Yami cast a warning glance at the man. The look of fear in his eyes was enough to tell him that he got the message, loud and clear.
"What was that all about," Jounouchi asked as Yami and Yūgi joined them at the booth finally. "Do I need to go and teach that guy a lesson?"
"It's fine, Jou," Yami assured him before he glanced down at Yūgi. "I saw the way that you were looking at him. Are you alright?"
Yūgi blew a breath before she nodded, "I thought that he was Han for a second. I don't know why. I know he's dead, but after last night, it's like every time that I turn around, I see him everywhere I look."
"You had another episode," Jounouchi asked, irking a brow. "That why ya weren't in history class this morning? I was worried about you when you didn't show up."
Yūgi nodded, taking the glass of water that she'd been passed by her boyfriend. She took a sip before she spoke. "The Wind by Mariah Carey started playing on my playlist last night for the first time since that night. And I think it triggered something because right after I listened to the song, maybe twenty minutes later I fell asleep and had that nightmare again for the first time in years. It freaked me out."
"Well," Ryo said as she reached and placed her hand on top of Yūgi's. "You don't have to worry about that anymore. Agent Tran took care of that guy for good. So, enjoy your life. You have us here to help you, especially Yami. The man loves you more than life itself and would do anything to make sure you were okay. We all would, you know that."
"I know," Yūgi said with a smile, "And I appreciate you guys for that. You're the best friend and boyfriend a girl could ask for. So, no more worrying about someone who is long dead and gone. He can't hurt me anymore, and I can't keep letting him control me from the grave. It's time to move on."
"That's the spirit," Mai said grinning. "Now, enough with the doom and gloom stuff. Let's get some drinks in rotation and have fun tonight. That's what we're here for anyways, right?"
"Yeah," everyone cheered in unison.
Yūgi grinned as she watched Mai flag down a waitress, and everyone placed their orders. She couldn't ask for better friends than the ones she had. They stuck with her through some really tough patches in her life. And, as Yami placed an arm around her shoulders and pulled her closer, she couldn't help the joy that spread through her heart and touched her soul. It was time to let the past go. And she was going to start that process now, here with her friends that loved her more than anything.
and it's done. please leave a review and let me know how you liked the story. i'm going to try and write the other one-shot that goes with this verse to wrap up this point in the story. i still haven't decided if i'm going to do that sequel, but like i said, i left it open to do so, so we'll see. until next time! ciao.