His Tears

Akiza has never seen Yusei cry before. He has always been one to keep calm under any situation and would never let his emotions run ramped. Unlike Yusei, however, Akiza knows that once she feels any sort of pain, the tears would roll down her cheeks. And he has seen her cry before, a number of times.

Because of how Akiza sees Yusei, a strong collected man, it was strange for her to walk into the garage and see Yusei alone in the darkness. His head was resting on the table, with his arms covering his face. It was only when Akiza noticed how heavily Yusei was breathing, did she realize something had to be wrong. She quietly walked besides him, not grabbing his attention at all.

The moment she stood next to the fellow Signer, Akiza heard the cries Yusei was trying to hide from the world. She put her hand on his shoulder, careful not to surprise him. Yusei slowly lifted his head and turned to the girl who appeared next to him. Akiza was in awe once she saw Yusei's skin so pale, bloodshot eyes and quivering jaw. Tears swelled up in his crystal blue eyes and ran down the sides of his marked face.

Once Yusei realized it was Akiza who walked up to him, he shook his head and tried to put on a brave face for her. It did not matter though. She had seen him and there was no hiding his emotions this time.

"Yusei, what's wrong?" Akiza asked delicately. She knew that whatever could make Yusei this upset had to be something serious.

Yusei tried to wipe his tears off on his sleeve, before responding with an obvious lie. "Nothing. Nothing is wrong. I'm just tired."

The young girl frowned. "You shouldn't lie to your friends, Yusei."

Yusei took a deep breath in. "Crow gave me a picture of my mother and father the other day. I had no idea how much I missed them, how much I needed them."

Akiza wanted to grab Yusei and hug him, but she knew that he needed some space. "Do you want to talk about it?"

"No. No. It's fine. I'll be fine." Yusei clumsily stood up from the desk and went to turn on the overhead lights.

"You don't have to act all brave and tough. No one here is in trouble." Akiza called to him. "It's alright to let go."

Before Yusei hit the switch, he stopped in his tracks. It is true that he always hid his feelings. He had to be strong for his friends and never wanted to let them know when he was having a rough day. So many people looked up to him for that very reason. Yusei turned back towards Akiza. Even in this low light, she still looked beautiful.

"Do you want to talk about...anything?" Akiza asked, trying to be careful with her choice of words.

Yusei did not answer her. Instead, he took a seat on the nearby couch. Akiza decided to sit besides him, a little closer than she normally would have. She let Yusei try to collect himself, before trying to get the bottom of why he was so upset.

"How's school going?" He asked, desperately wanting to avoid the real problem at hand.

Akiza tilted her head. She will play his little game of diversion for now. "It's alright. I'm ahead in all my classes thanks to you. It's nice to get back to a normal life after everything that's happened."

Yusei nodded in agreement. It certainly was nice to have some form of security in his own life, even with all the mysterious events surrounding the WRGP that made him feel a bit concerned.

"How's the engine coming along?" Akiza asked, going along with Yusei's tangent.

The young man let out a small laugh. "I haven't built one that totally works yet. Looks like I'll have to head back to the design phase again."

"I hope Jack and Crow are helping." She replied.

"Crow helps whenever he can. Jack on the other hand." Yusei's words began to trail off when he started thinking back to his stubborn friend.

Akiza smiled. "I think that it's amazing you three stayed such close friends after all these years. I wish I had even one friend like that."

"They were like brothers to me growing up. I guess I still consider them to be my family, even though we get on each others nerves a whole lot more now."

Akiza suddenly rose from the couch. "Maybe you need to get out the this garage. I can't remember the last time I saw you outside."

Yusei smiled and stood in agreement. "Alright."

The two friends walked up the stairs and outside together. The sun had almost finish setting, leaving way for a beautiful, clear night sky to enrobe the city. The air was much crisper than previous nights and the calm breeze blew through the trees lines just so. The city lights, shining in the deep sky were the best part. Yusei looked besides him at the beautiful girl walking next to him. It was so nice to have her as a friend. Maybe it would be even better to have her as more than a friend?

"So, you never really told me what made you so upset?" Akiza finally asked, not wanting to avoid the subject any longer. "Is it about your parents?"

Yusei's eyes were now transfixed forward, recalling the hours in the garage before Akiza had come over. "Yea, I guess that was part of it."

"Part of it?"

"I was just thinking about how much my life has changed over the past few months." Yusei answered in his normal, calm voice. "When I look back, I barely even recognize the boy I once was. Such a scared little kid."

"Come on, Yusei." Akiza wanted to start cheering him up. She wanted to see him smile again, now that she was starting to figure out what was bothering him. "Sure, we've all been through rough times, but think of all the great things you've done. I can't even begin to describe how much you've helped me. And I'm just one of the dozens of people you've helped out."

"I guess your right." Yusei smiled. He had no idea Akiza felt that way towards him and wondered if there was something more laced in her words.

"You know you're not alone, right?" She lowered her voice. "You don't have to fight by yourself. All those bonds you formed with others have given you friends that are more than happy to help you through any situation. You don't always have to be the hero."

Yusei stopped walking. "I just can't help feeling responsible to protect everyone. I don't know if it's because I want to make up for the past or I just hate seeing people suffer, like I did."

Akiza walked back to Yusei and stood in front of him. The girl gazed up into his eyes, never feeling so secure in her life before. "You know, Yusei, after all the times you've seen me cry, I think you owe me one." She smiled. "Just know that whenever you don't feel right, you can always come talk to me. That's what friends are for, right?"

"But, we're not friends." Yusei quietly said.

"What?!" Akiza had to take a step back.

The young man reached out for Akiza and pulled her in close. She could feel the redness on her cheeks deepen and her heart started beating faster. Yusei leaned in and whispered something into Akiza's ear. "Maybe we could be more than friends."

All the lights of the city shined down on Akiza and Yusei, as he pressed his lips against hers, slowly wrapping his arms around her shoulders. At first, Akiza was shocked, but slowly found herself becoming lost in the beautiful sight. It was what she had always dreamed of and what Yusei always wanted. Akiza wrapped her arms around Yusei's neck and jumped up on her toes.

If only they could show their past selves how wonderful everything was going to turn out in the end. How no matter what, Yusei and Akiza knew that they would always have someone there for them, through the best and the worst of times. The day started out with dark tears, but ended with a bright kiss.