Disclaimer: I don't own Yu-gi-oh, pizzas, Frisbees, or any video games mentioned in the A/N.
A/N: Inspired by the "Song of Healing" from Zelda and my own band camp experience, and written while listening to music from FFVI…There's something wrong with me!
This is written for the Heartshipping portion/second round of Compy's Fanfiction Contest. It's not my best, but it's not my worst either. Thanks to everyone who read my last one and reviewed. I love you guys!
Summertime
Had Yugi been prone to cursing, now would have been the perfect opportunity. The summer heat was in full effect for what he had planned for everyone, and that was not a good thing, especially since the brick building he was waiting in front of was a pizza parlor. He had thought that a pizza would be the perfect way to start relaxing on their break from school; he never considered that summer break would live up to its namesake quite so quickly. Still, if he knew his friends (which he did), they wouldn't be the kind to turn down pizza only on account of the warm weather. Sure enough, a shining, white mop of hair bounced his way.
"Hello, Yugi!" its owner called. "I figured you would already be here!"
With a small chuckle, Yugi nodded. "It'd just be rude to leave someone alone when I was the one who suggested this."
A tiny smile temporarily quirked the corner of Bakura's lips, but he suddenly appeared a lot less confident in the other boy's presence. "Ah, about that…Thank you for inviting me out with you all today. I know my being here won't be very good for everyone's relaxation…"
Yugi waved a dismissive hand at the Millennium Ring outlined underneath Bakura's shirt. "Bakura, we haven't had any trouble with him over the past few months. Even if just for today, can't we just put that all aside?"
"Well…I guess if that's what you want, I'll try to act normally today. So, we already know Joey and Tristan will likely show up 'fashionably late,' but when will Téa get here…?" he mused aloud.
"I can't imagine Téa will be much longer. She definitely likes arriving on time to things like this. I think we should go inside, though," he added as an afterthought. "You already look like you're suffering from all this heat!" He motioned towards Bakura's now flushed face and slightly damp bangs.
"Yes, this weather and I don't agree very much, and they'll be able to find us inside anyway." He turned to the door and held it open before following Yugi inside, reveling in the blast of cool air he stepped into. Brushing back his hair, he slid onto the seat of a booth in the corner, which also happened to double as a watch spot for everyone else due to the large window in the front of the store.
Yugi took his menu and scanned through all the items. There was actually quite a bit of variety for a place known for just pizza. While debating, he tried to strike up another conversation. "How did you do on your final grades, Bakura?"
A light blush covered up the flush from the earlier heat as Bakura replied in a modest and shy tone. "I managed to keep my 4.0 grade point average. The teachers are saying there's a very good chance I'll make valedictorian next year."
"Really? That's incredible! Good job!" Yugi cheered.
"Yeah! Good job, Bakura!" Téa chimed from the side of the table. Yugi and Bakura jumped: so much for keeping an eye out for everyone.
The addressed boy turned an even darker shade of red. "Thanks Yugi…Téa," he mumbled.
She couldn't help laughing at his response. "You don't have to be embarrassed!" she reassured him while taking the seat on Yugi's other side. "I think it's great that you're an overachiever! I mean…"
A flash of shock crossed both of the boys' faces before being replaced by a smile after they laughed at her comment. Téa grinned, too, glad that her "slip-up" had put them both in a better mood.
"Well, what about your grades, Yugi?" she asked, picking up her own menu and shuffling through it. "Hm…that sandwich sounds good…" she added to herself.
"I pulled off a 3.87…" he groaned. "Pre-calc killed me." He sighed, remembering the disastrous results of his final. "How about you?"
Téa rolled her eyes. "Well, it's not like grades should really matter for what I want to do, but…I got a C in Biology. Everything else was good though."
Any further conversation was interrupted by the waiter's arrival at their table. They weren't ready to order at that moment, but a round of drinks definitely wouldn't hurt, so they picked what they wanted and the waiter quickly left them to their talking.
"Should we have ordered something for Joey and Tristan?" Téa wondered.
"I think it would just condense and get watered down if we ordered their drinks." Bakura glanced out the window before finishing. "Besides, I'm sure they'll be coming any minute n-AH-ow!" he yelped, flinching back as a plastic disk reflected off of the window with a resounding thud. Ignoring the snickers from the other two, he peered off to the side, where he could see Joey running to pick up the Frisbee.
"I guess that means they're here!" Yugi chuckled. Moments later, Joey and Tristan burst in through the door, making a beeline for the table.
Joey had a (mock?) horrified expression. "Ya mean ya didn't even order the food?!" he griped, plopping down next to Bakura and forcing him to slide closer towards Yugi as Tristan shoved him over.
"Order it yourself!" Téa shot back, motioning over the waiter. "I'll have the turkey sandwich, please."
Tristan looked shocked at Téa's sudden change of attitude, but brushed it off. "One medium pepperoni pizza for us!" he said, indicating Joey.
"Nah, one for you and one for me! And two root beers!" Joey piped up, ignoring the muttered "boys" from across the table.
Yugi and Bakura looked at each other. "Is sausage good?" Yugi asked, wanting to keep part of the bill lower.
"Sausage sounds fine," Bakura agreed, and also decided that a medium would be more than enough for both of them. There was only a slight amount of chatter before the cooked food arrived, but after Joey and Tristan got some food in their systems, things started getting crazy.
"So, Téa, what's with the sandwich? You're in a pizza parlor! You should have gotten a pizza!" Joey nagged, never one to just leave well enough alone. He chuckled at the glare she sent back his way.
"Well, unlike you, I have to watch what I eat for my future job. I can't just pig out as much as I want," she snapped.
"Guys-" Yugi's and Bakura's simultaneous response sounded, interrupting the argument and themselves. The two looked at each other, laughing.
Tristan pretended to be above the conversation, but couldn't help but add, "They're right, Joey. Just chill out for a while."
"Ah, can it, Tristan. Like you're one ta talk!" Joey jibed, shoving him lightly and almost making him fall out of his seat. He turned back to his pizza, not expecting Tristan to immediately retaliate and push him as well. Bakura yelped as he was suddenly sandwiched between Joey and Yugi. He struggled to get free, not realizing his shin would connect with one of the supports under the table. He winced in pain as the dull sound of echoing metal dawned on everyone.
"Bakura, are you alright?" Yugi asked, concerned.
Still grimacing, Bakura nodded. "Yes, I'm fine. Don't worry about me," he said, wincing again as it throbbed. It slowly faded, but feeling extremely guilty at having hurt one of their friends, Joey and Tristan somehow refrained from saying anything rude for the rest of their meal, and Yugi quickly paid the bill on the way out.
The heat had still not died down; if anything, it felt warmer now that it was later in the afternoon. However, that didn't stop the two more energetic boys of the group from pulling out the Frisbee again. As they tossed it around, Téa sighed, but only before intercepting one of the throws and passing it to Bakura. The unexpected toss caused him to fumble with it for a moment before passing it back to Joey.
After five minutes with the Frisbee, Yugi noticed a frown forming in Bakura's expression and quickly glanced away when he noticed Bakura's head shaking at his questioning look. He hoped there was nothing seriously wrong, but since the British boy could be extremely stubborn sometimes, there wasn't any telling with him.
If Bakura was being honest with himself, he really didn't need to be running around with the weather like it was. He was already expecting to burn with even just this amount of time outside. But, after Yugi had invited him out, he didn't want to be a killjoy and spoil the mood. He continued forcing himself to chase after the disc, even when chills started to form on his skin.
The good mood lasted even until they reached Téa's house, with her insisting that she needed to start working on scholarships for dance school. She left them with a smile, and watched out the window as the boys disappeared, still having fun.
"Hey, Bakura, go long!" Joey shouted, waiting as Bakura ran ahead, and threw the disc as hard as he could. It soared over his head, and he tried a full out sprint in order to catch it. He stretched his fingers out, finally leaping into the air and diving for it before it touched the ground. Joey and Tristan cheered as he retrieved the Frisbee and rolled to absorb the shock from hitting the ground.
Ignoring the dull thrumming in his leg from the shock and the white spots that were swimming in front of his eyes, Bakura paced back towards them, a dazed but happy smile flashing triumphantly.
"Bakura?" Yugi said, breaking the happy moment. "Are you sure you're OK?"
"Yes, I'm sure!" he lied, approaching them. "Yeah…" he repeated as the white dots darkened to black and he pitched over onto the pavement.
--
Cold…it was so cold…too cold…The feeling, like ice, was everywhere on Bakura's body at once. He was barely even conscious, but the chill was spread all through his body. As he concentrated, he recognized the low hum of a fan, a motor perhaps, and the texture of a washcloth on his forehead. But still, what he felt most of all was the unbearable cold.
Forcing his eyes open, even though his body was telling him to go back to sleep, he noticed he wasn't even at his own house. As he glanced over to his left, he saw Yugi wringing out another rag to place on his head.
He could hardly rasp out what he wanted to say, but a feeble "Y-Yugi" managed to escape his throat. The other boy startled, turning back so fast he could have caused himself whiplash. "Wh-what…?"
Yugi was excited, that much Bakura could tell. "You're awake! That's great…do you remember what happened?"
Fuzzy memories began invading his mind, the thoughts a direct contrast to the environment he was in now. The chills were the same, but he remembered the heat…weakly, he brought his hand up to his cheek. That explained why it was so cold; he was burning up. "Heat stroke…?" he mumbled.
"Why didn't you tell us you weren't feeling good?" he chided, giving Bakura a stern gaze.
"…didn't want to…ruin it…"
Noticing that the cloth he was holding was dripping on the floor, Yugi moved it to Bakura's forehead, frowning as he shivered uncontrollably. "That's not a good reason. You know we're more worried about you than a good day. Don't hurt yourself just for us. You always do that."
Bakura stayed silent, both at the concerned tone and at the accuracy in Yugi's statement. They both knew he was referring to the Spirit of the Millennium Ring.
"But I…"
"There are no buts about it, Bakura! We are here to support each other…all of us are. Learn to accept that fact. We aren't going to let anything happen to you."
Bakura looked around the room, wondering why no-one else was adding on anything to the speech. It was then that he realized nobody else was around to add anything on. "Where…is everyone…?" he wondered, having gotten back enough strength to at least as a simple question.
"It's past eleven at night. I sent them home."
Bakura tried to sit up instinctively in shock. "Eleven?!" he groaned as his head sent him the message to lie back down.
"Yeah, you've been out for seven hours almost. But, we took turns to make sure you were alright. I've been on my own for a couple hours now," Yugi said, but it wasn't in an accusing tone. It was almost caring. It was definitely different from what Bakura was used to hearing.
As if noticing the change of attitude from his "patient," Yugi stood back up. "Well, you should probably get some more sleep. I'll go sleep on the couch."
"Couch?"
"You're on my bed," he replied, as if it was the most normal thing in the world.
"Oh…" came the shy, quiet response as he finally noticed that he was indeed in Yugi's room. "OK, then…I'll see you tomorrow then…?"
"Of course," Yugi replied, escaping the room after grabbing his light blue pajamas.
Bakura didn't fall asleep very quickly, his mind refusing to stop processing everything that happened during the day. Besides, after seven hours of sleep, he wasn't very tired. He had never realized Yugi was so protective of his friends…and honestly he had never seen this level of it before. Wondering what it all meant, he turned to his side, closing his eyes but letting his mind wander the rest of the night.
--