A/N: This one-shot is AU all the way, but it's vaguely based on the events of episode 24.
Forgiveness
He was already halfway towards tipsy, but Yami downed another sip of beer, forcing his eyes away from the corner of the room where Yugi was talking with Malik. The burn of jealousy was vicious in its intensity, twisting his stomach as his eyes drifted once more, settling in on his hikari.
They were at Anzu's new apartment, christening the two bedroom on the east side of Domino that she and Shizuka had signed a lease on a few weeks earlier. The living room was packed with people and, despite the two open windows on the far wall, stuffy with the collective breath of everyone sardined inside. It was a tiny, dated space, with paneled walls and warped hardwood, but the girls were all smiles as they circulated the room, ecstatic to be out on their own.
A couple passed in front of him, obstructing Yugi from his line of sight, before disappearing into the kitchen. His hikari was smiling at Malik, face splitting in a wide grin before taking a sip of his drink. Yami felt the frown on his face as Malik leaned forward, whispering something as Yugi began to laugh.
"You're pining, man," Jou said. He had returned from the kitchen, a fresh beer in hand. He was dressed in jeans in a flannel shirt, still as lanky as he'd been in high school as he leaned against the wall beside him.
Yami took another gulp of his drink. "Why is he here with Malik?"
"They're friends," Jou said. "You know that."
Of course he knew; Malik had been a reoccurring guest in their apartment for over a year. The visits had started as the former tomb keeper had helped guide them through the beginnings of their bond but had become more and more social throughout the months as Yugi began to seek confidences with his fellow hikari.
"I am aware of their friendship," Yami said, though he had considered banishing the hikari of the rod to the shadow realm more than once since he'd spotted him with Yugi an hour earlier.
"Then chill out," Jou said. "I could see how pissed you are from all the way in the kitchen."
"He is not wearing the puzzle," Yami said.
It had been a week since they'd spoken, and the initial blowback from losing his mental connection with his hikari hadn't seemed half as intense as it did standing in the same room with him. He'd known he removed the puzzle from the moment Yugi's mind had disappeared from his, but seeing him, separated not only by the air between them but the complete and utter lack of his hikari's presence in his mind, hit him like a battering ram in the chest.
"You guys had a pretty big fight," Jou said. "Did you really expect him to keep wearing it?"
Yami gulped down the rest of his drink, embracing the fuzziness that had begun to temper the ache in his chest that had started the moment Yugi had walked out of their apartment seven days earlier.
Jou glanced down at Yami's empty cup, sighing. "You just got to give him some time, pharaoh," he said. "He's freaked out. I hate Kaiba as much as the next person, but still…"
"I did what I had to, to protect him," Yami said.
"Hey, man – I am not trying to get in the middle here," Jou said. "I'm just offering some friendly advice, and that's to wipe that murderous look off your face before Yugi looks over here."
Yami allowed his expression to fall flat, glancing over at Jou, who shook his head, mumbling something into his cup. They stood there for another few moments before a skinny brunette carrying a wine cooler stopped in front of Jou, blinking up at him under dark lashes as she introduced herself. Yami excused himself, forcing his eyes away from Yugi as he made his way to the kitchen.
Despite the number of people packed in the apartment, the kitchen was deserted as he crossed over the landing, heading for the keg. It was a narrow room, the appliances tiny and smooshed together to leave a cramped stretch of counter space that was packed with half empty bottles of alcohol. He'd already started filling his cup when footsteps sounded behind him.
"Hi," Yugi said.
Yami whipped around, the tap clanging against metal as he found Yugi a few feet away. It had been a week since he'd been alone in the same room with him, and his heart had begun a rapid staccato in his chest as he met his hikari's eyes.
"You're not wearing the puzzle," Yami said. It came out without much thought, buzz loosening his lips, and he could have slapped himself as a frown curled on Yugi's face, hands reaching up, almost on instinct, to cup the puzzle that was no longer hanging around his neck.
"It's at Malik's," Yugi said. He dropped his eyes, shoving his hands in his pockets. "It's in his safe, so it's safe."
Yami nodded, desperation uncurling in his stomach as he forced his feet to remain still. They hadn't gone so long without each other since they'd met over a year ago, and the desire to narrow the space between them snapped under his skin, urging him to move closer.
"If you want it back…" Yugi said.
"It is always yours," Yami said. The idea of his hikari returning the puzzle chilled the blood in his veins, and he found himself stepping forward on instinct, wishing, not for the first time in the past week, that he knew what was going through Yugi's head.
Yugi glanced up at him, and he stopped mid-step, forcing himself to relax back onto his heels as his hikari watched him. There was a burst of noise from the living room, followed by a chattering of laughter, and Yugi angled his body towards the door, crossing his arms over his chest, cupping his elbows.
"I should get back," Yugi said. "I just…" He let out a breath, shaking his head. "I should get back," he repeated, though his feet remained on the ground as he met Yami's eyes, shoulders curling forward as he tightened his arms across his chest.
"I would like to speak with you," Yami said, "in private."
Yugi shook his head. "It's not a good idea right now."
The desperation began to claw its way up Yami's throat. He couldn't let him leave, spend another week without him, worried, missing him; but he would not force Yugi, not ever. The tightness in his chest cracked across his sternum as his hikari turned from him, rounding back into the living room and disappearing from sight.
Yami forced his hands steady as he turned back to the keg, filling the rest of his cup and emptying it in several long draughts. He closed his eyes, the buzz tingling across his consciousness as he let out a long breath, willing the frustration churning inside of him to ease. It took few minutes to clear his head, two girls skirting past him they filled their cups with one of the wine bottles on the counter.
Filling his cup once more, Yami clenched the plastic in his hand as he returned to the living room, spotting Jou, who had gone from one brunette to another, Anzu smiling at him as she waved him over.
"Hey, Yami," Anzu said. Her face was flushed, dark eyes finding his as she beamed up at him. "How's it going? I'm glad you came. I wasn't sure if you would."
"I may or may not have dragged him," Jou said, nudging his shoulder.
"Yeah, I understand," Anzu said. "When Yugi told me you two broke up, I couldn't believe it."
Yami frowned. Is that what his hikari was telling people? That they'd broken up? He sent a sidelong glance to the corner of the room, jerking around as he found it empty. He scanned the room, searching for the familiar ridges of spiked hair, panic jumping in his throat as he failed to spot Yugi or Malik.
"Where is he?" Yami said. He could hear the slight slur in his words, but the buzz had soured as his heart began to race. He thought he'd have more time, at least another minute to speak with him.
Anzu frowned. "He left with Malik a minute or so ago," she said. "He said he wasn't feeling good."
"Excuse me," Yami said. He skirted around Anzu, heading towards the door, ignoring Jou's voice behind him as he called out his name. He set his drink on the table by the door, the hallway silent as he stepped outside, pounding down the steps, and out onto the street.
The air was crisp with the beginnings of early fall, the sky stretching dark and clear above him. He whipped his head to each side, catching a glimpse of two figures a few blocks ahead. His feet were clumsy as he bolted after them.
The neighborhood was a residential borough that sat on the outskirts of the city, and the streets were deserted as he pumped his arms drawing closer. By the time he reached them, he was breathing hard, stumbling past a grocer closing his gate for the night as he met them at the end of the block.
"Yugi!" Yami said, recovering his breath as he closed the final feet between them.
The pair stopped, swiveling around to face him, his hikari's eyes wide as he met his.
"Are you alright?" Yugi said. He stepped forward, concerned, hand reaching out before pausing, collapsing his arm back to his side. "Did you run all the way down here?"
"Pharaoh," Malik said, bowing his head. Despite his insistence that they use his legal name, the former tomb keeper and his sister had yet to address him by anything other than the honorific. "Are you well?"
"I would like to speak with you," Yami said, eyes trained on his hikari.
"Like I said earlier, I just don't think it's a great idea right now," Yugi said.
"Because you have told people that our relationship has concluded?" Yami said. He stepped forward, shaking his head. "I will not allow you to detach yourself from me via a message delivered by a third party. If you are adamant in your desire to separate then I demand to hear the words from you." So I can convince you otherwise.
Yugi frowned, eyebrows drawing together as he glanced over at Malik.
"I will say goodnight," Malik said. He stepped back, bowing his head once more.
"Wait," Yugi said, desperate. "Don't just – "
"It is time," Malik said, nodding. He offered a small smile before turning on his heel, hands in his pockets as he rounded the block, leaving them alone.
They were silent for a moment, a car whizzing past them as they stood, his hikari's eyes trained on the sidewalk as he let out a long breath.
"I didn't tell people that we broke up," Yugi said.
"Anzu said otherwise," Yami said.
Yugi looked up at him. "I told her that we had a fight, and I was sleeping on Malik's couch. If she said that we broke up then I guess she just assumed that we had."
"Will you return home then?" Yami said. He could hear the desperate note in his voice, his entire body heavy as the alcohol began to metabolize, dragging him down.
"I really don't know what to do," Yugi said. He met his eyes, letting out a long breath. "I am still upset about what happened, Yami. It's not like this is all because you didn't take out the trash; you tried to banish Kaiba's soul."
"He had become a threat to you," Yami said.
Yugi held up his hands. "Pegasus had kidnapped his brother! He was desperate! Of course he tried to use me as leverage to get him back. He didn't do anything that you wouldn't have done if someone had kidnapped me."
"You are my hikari," Yami said. "I will go to any length to ensure your safety."
"At the expense of killing someone else?" Yugi said, incredulous. He shook his head. "You told me the point of the magic that connects us was so that I could stop the shadows from controlling you, but if I hadn't thrown myself in front of you, you would have ignored every word I said trying to stop you. You would have killed Kaiba!"
"I would never hurt you, Yugi," Yami said.
"I know that," Yugi said. "But I can't be with someone who is willing to destroy a person who can still be saved."
"The darkness in Kaiba's soul will continue to grow until he is nothing but evil," Yami said.
"You don't know that!" Yugi said. He leaned forward, angry. "You don't get to lay down that kind of judgement on people. Everything turned out fine. Mokuba is home, and I am safe. Kaiba's plan worked!"
"And put you at risk," Yami said.
"I am always at risk!" Yugi said. "From the moment I put that puzzle around my neck, I accepted that. People are going to keep coming after us, Yami. I know you know that. But what I don't know is whether I can trust you to make the right choices when things don't go exactly to plan. You can't just destroy everyone's soul every time you feel like I am in danger."
Yami stepped closer, narrowing the distance between them. "I will not lose you."
"There are ways of keeping us both safe other than banishing people to the shadow realm," Yugi said. He remained still as Yami stepped closer, closing the distance until he was looking down at his hikari, a foot between them. "Yami?"
Yami sank back on his heels, hands pressed against his sides, desperation twinging in his chest. It had been too long since he'd last touched his hikari.
"I need you to promise me that you won't do anything like that again," Yugi said.
Yami frowned. To make such a promise would end their stalemate. It was a fair deal, a logical one, but when it came to Yugi, he was anything but rational. However, the ache of their days apart had left their shadow on his consciousness. He could not be without his hikari any longer, and if control was what Yugi demanded then he was helpless to deny him.
"You have my word," Yami said.
"Okay," Yugi said. He bit his lip, looking up at him. "Thank you."
"And you will return home?" Yami said. His fingers itched at his sides, so desperate to reach out and close the few inches still separating them. At Yugi's nod, he stepped forward, sealing the distance. His hikari's arms closed around his waist, cheek pressed against his t-shirt as Yami pulled him closer, hand cupping the back of his head.
Finally. The relief was warm as it spread through his chest, and he tightened his arms around his hikari for the first time in what seemed like weeks. It still amazed him, even a year into their bond, how much power Yugi held over him, the sheer weight of his forgiveness almost bringing him to his knees.
It took a few breaths before Yugi looked up, reaching up a hand to wipe the tears in his eyes. "Sorry, I just missed you," he said, taking a long breath. "But you really scared me with Kaiba."
Yami leaned forward, pressing their lips together, the weight dropping from his shoulders as Yugi's arms wrapped around his neck, opening his mouth for him. By the time they separated, Yugi's face was flushed, eyes still red from his earlier tears, but his palm warm as he tucked his hand into his.
"You know," Yugi said, a laugh hiccupping in his throat, "I don't think I've ever seen you this close to drunk."
"I am not intoxicated," Yami said, frowning.
A smile curled on Yugi's lips. "You're leaning on me pretty heavily," he said. "Are you sure you're not having trouble standing up straight?"
"I am fine, aibou," Yami said, though he didn't protest as Yugi moved closer, propping him up.
"Well, I am pretty tired," Yugi said. He looked up at him. "Are you ready to go home?"
Yami could have collapsed on the concrete then and there, the relief stealing all the energy left in his legs, as he leaned on his hikari, following him home.