Disclaimer: I own nothing involved in this story unless I invented it myself. This is written for fun, not for profit. All forms of feedback eagerly accepted. Concrit is loved the most, but everything is welcome.
Fandom: Yu-Gi-Oh GX
Title: Getting Closer
Romance: Ryou x Yuusuke
Word Count: 1,000||Status: One-shot
Genre: Romance||Rated: G
Challenge: Written for the Diversity Writing Challenge, section B62, write a fic with no dialogue; Written for One Ship Boot Camp, prompt #39, date
Summary: It's been some time since Ryou & Yuusuke saw one another. They've both changed. A little time together, a quiet little oceanside date, could help with that.

Yuusuke liked being able to breathe. He also enjoyed being able to think and to talk, but all three of those stuttered to a halt the first time he actually looked at Marufuji Ryou once the whole mess with Darkness had been cleared up.

Vaguely he recalled having seen the other before; when he'd been the one to draw him into the shadows, but like all of his other memories of that time, there seemed to be a kind of barrier of glass between them and his thoughts of now. He could remember them, but they didn't affect him the way what he saw and thought now did.

Black leather. Never once had he imagined what Ryou would look like wearing that. The whole concept had never even occurred to him. But now that he saw him in it, he couldn't imagine his old friend in anything else.

He learned from Fubuki and Juudai what had happened; how Ryou had entered the Pros and then learned the hard way that being perfect wasn't all that it was cracked up to be. The idea of Ryou being anything less than a perfect duelist of respect took some getting used to, but the more time he spent around the other, the more that he liked Ryou as he was now.

Not that he'd ever disliked him before, but this new Ryou seemed so much more comfortable in his own skin than the one he'd known before. Maturity, that was it. Yuusuke liked it.

He liked it to the point that Fubuki noticed. Which really wasn't saying much; Fubuki had tried to set them up during their first year anyway. He'd heard recently about the 'love duel' their friend had arranged a couple of years earlier and recognized in it the echos of what he'd tried between them.

Which was why Yuusuke said nothing at all to Fubuki about the growing heat of emotions, all centered on Ryou, inside of him. It had been bad enough when Fubuki was only trying to be the love guide to the majority of the school. Now that he had actual experience in that position? Nothing was safe at all.

Including the two of them, it seemed, as Yuusuke warily followed Fubuki to a stretch of beach that had a table and two chairs set up on it. The table had a delicious array of food and drinks, and for once, Fubuki had the sense to take himself off once the two of them were settled down.

Not for one minute did either of them think he'd actually, genuinely left the area. He might not be openly interfering – more than he had already anyway – but he was watching them, and probably making a list of points to discuss afterward.

But the view was good and the food looked amazing, and it wasn't that bad to spend some extra time with Ryou, so Yuusuke wasn't going to argue a great deal about it, at least not now.

Ryou seemed to feel the same way. The two of them spent more time around each other than they did many other people these days, getting to know one another all over again. But those were conversations that covered only the points Yuusuke had missed in his years away. Very seldom had anything gone beyond that. This was different, something they figured out very quickly.

Yuusuke knew that Ryou stayed on the island to recover his strength after what happened some months earlier. His heart was well on the way to healing and the day would come when he could take part in professional duels again. He and his brother, whom Yuusuke had met and who kept giving him wary, measuring looks, planned to create their own Pro League. Right now, Shou dueled in the already existing one, fighting to build his reputation so when the time came, they would be able to draw participants.

It sounded like such a wonderful dream, one fitting for the Kaiser. But when Yuusuke said that, Ryou shook his head. He was no longer the Kaiser; that title had passed to Shou. He hadn't made up his mind if he wished to be known still as Hell Kaiser, but the thought didn't displease him.

The more that Yuusuke thought on it, the more he agreed. It wasn't just the black leather – stunning as it was – but that no other title truly seemed to express who Ryou was.

Yuusuke remained on the island to recover himself as well, but mentally instead of physically. He had already made plans with Principal Samejima for taking classes once they started up again, and he liked the idea of doing some traveling as well, when the time came. He'd never cared much for people, even before all of this with Darkness, and he wanted to try to change that. He wanted to see what the world had to offer.

Maybe even every world. He knew of the other dimensions and science and magic both offered ways to reach them. The idea of spending more time with Honest there appealed to him as well. He'd hurt his partner without even realizing it and that needed to be assuaged too.

Neither of them completely noticed the passage of time. They were aware of it, but it made little difference, as they abandoned the table and the completed meal and began to walk down the beach together. There was still so much that they wanted to talk about and moving was far more attractive than sitting down.

The idea of traveling appealed to Ryou too, especially in those other worlds. He'd visited one before, but his goal hadn't been to explore or visit. Yuusuke could imagine the two of them traveling for a very long time together.

And if behind them, they heard the faint noises of Fubuki cheering to himself, and if beside him, Yuusuke saw Honest's approving smile and nod, then both of them merely smiled and kept on walking together.

The End

Note: Thank you for reading and a hope that you enjoyed the story. Please let me know what you thought of it if at all possible.