Title: Less than Five Seconds

Fandom: Yu-Gi-Oh!

Characters: Anzu Mazaki, Yuugi Mutou.

Pairing: Peachshipping

Genre: Romance, introspection.

Rating: G

Note: I'm not too proud of this one, but this kept hitting at me and...God, I hope this doesn't suck. I'm pretty sure it does, but...


It took less than five seconds for a person to pick up the phone, whisper "Hello" into the receiver and wait for the voice to play on the other end, but somehow that was enough for it to seem, even for only this amount of time, like they weren't far apart at all.

Maybe it was the sound of his voice, or the way she could imagine him playing with the cards she knew he was holding as he balanced the phone between his shoulder and the crook of his neck. Maybe it was the usual voice of his Grandfather rattling off in the background, possibly to a customer that had stepped in just as he or she called(it never really mattered which one of them did the dialing, though most of the time she did it; he was never sure what time it was, and time differences never seemed to affect him, even if she had somehow managed to call at two in the morning Japan Time and he had school the next day). She could almost hear the usual creaks in the floor as he walked, and see his side collide with the counter again as he fumbled for the morning paper to tell her the day's headlines.

Maybe it was the sound of Jonouchi making obnoxious kissing and slurping noises the moment Yuugi's voice touched her ears, as well as the usual laughter and embarrassed cries of protest that followed. Honda would sometimes be there, too, letting out a guffaw at both boys' expenses as Anzu proceeded to threaten the offending blonde through the phone whilst Yuugi made some attempt at acting as an embarrassed mediator between the two of them.

...Maybe it was the sound of his fingers drumming against a tabletop as they talked, the discussion of homework left entirely forgotten.

Maybe it was the talk of fall leaves and final exams, or Winter and the coming Christmas break.

But he was there; she was here. Two separate places, two separate lives, yet still held together by an unbreakable thread, and a signal going across land, sea, and time zones as their usual contact kept them close.

But no matter how much things seemed to change, or how far apart they were...

How come it always felt, hearing that voice on the other line, that it was always the same?

It took less than five seconds to say goodbye, touching the 'end' button as one's head leaned against the wall of their bedroom...but that was all it took to feel the hope of her inevitable return, with one thought running through each of their minds:

"Long distance relationships suck."