Two and a half months after Joey rescued Ryou, and things were going well. Too well.
It was one of the more peaceful evenings at the apartment when things began to fall apart. Ryou was on the couch reading a novel and Joey was sitting at the table adding up receipts and paycheck stubs to get a grip on where they were financially. Now that they were both working, being as frugal as possible, and almost caught up on rent, Joey wanted to see if they could move to a less sketchy section of town. The sooner they got out of this apartment, the better. Once they'd relocated, Joey felt like there was no way for his father to ever reenter his life.
The sound of a key being fumbled in the lock of the door, accompanied by indistinct, disgruntled muttering, caught the attention of both of them. Joey looked up, eyes widening as he realized what was happening. He sprang up, knocking the chair over with a clatter, rushing for the door but not reaching it in time. His father, looking like homeless hell, burst through the door. The night was still young, but he was already stoned.
"Say, son, can you spare a few?" he slurred, his tone overbearing and entitled. He stepped forward, prepared to take the money he'd come to claim, but Joey stopped him.
"No, Jack," he retained, blocking his father's way. "There's no place for you here. Go."
"Ungrateful son of a—" Jack Wheeler lifted his fists to strike his son, not expecting any resistance on Joey's part, only to be punched in the stomach and pushed back against the wall, doubling over in pain.
"Get out and don't come back," Joey growled, ready to force his father out if necessary. The older man looked up at his son with anger in his eyes. That was when the violence broke out, causing Ryou to drop the library book and retreat behind the couch, out of their way as the two family members fought viciously. It wasn't really a fair fight, since Jack was drunk and Joey had gotten stronger. But Jack fought dirty, and that was why the fight lasted for as long as it did, which still wasn't very long, especially not to Ryou, who'd been ear-witness to several violent wrestling matches between Bakura and Malik that had lasted incredibly long. As much as Ryou didn't want to get involved, he felt obligated to watch, just in case his friend needed his help.
He didn't, though; Joey was capable of handling himself, and soon had his father pinned. "You're going to leave, and you're not going to come back. Got it?" Joey growled.
Jack Wheeler lifted his head, noticing Ryou for the first time. He started laughing like a maniac, then began spouting such obscene accusations that made even Joey's face turn scarlet. The words, however, were not alien to Ryou's ears, and while they didn't shock him, they did hurt. Joey hauled his father up to his feet and shoved him out of the door, locking it firmly behind him. They were both silent and still for several moments before Joey turned around and looked at his friend. Ryou looked upset, and while he blushed, he wasn't nearly as red as Joey.
"Bakura talked like that," Ryou spoke into the relative silence, staring down at his hands with vacant eyes. The first thing that occurred to Joey was that this whole incident might induce some kind of relapse in his recovering friend.
Joey walked over to Ryou, offering him a hand and helping him stand before pulling him into a tight hug. He returned it, feeling a little unsteady.
"Remember, bud: the only power he has over you now is the power you give him." Ryou nodded in answer, closing his eyes as he pressed his face to Joey's shoulder and hugged him even more tightly. Unhappy thoughts swirled through his mind in a dark vortex that threatened to suck him in.
"I think I'll go to bed now," Ryou said quietly at last. Joey looked worried, but didn't say anything beyond wishing him sound sleep.
Ryou lay in bed awake for hours, fighting the itch to reach for the stolen blade and slit his skin the way Bakura taught him to. Joey'd never had the urge to do so before, but Mr. Wheeler's drunken tirade had triggered something inside him. The words had been much too close to what his yami would shout when he lashed his host with his belt. Hearing those words reawakened the utter pain and grief that Ryou had felt at such times, making him feel as if he'd just relived the torture in full. If he was honest with himself, he had felt a strange sense of release when Bakura had cut him, a distraction from everything else that ached; it had felt like being able to breathe again, like regaining some ghostly semblance of control. Yet here he was, in full control of his life, so why did he find himself craving the knife? Why was it suddenly so hard to breathe?
Joey was right: he had to be strong, to not give in to his influence. He bit his bottom lip, tagging at the skin with his teeth until he tasted blood. The small twinge of pain helped him get a grip on himself. He rolled over onto his side to face the wall, slowly drifting off to sleep. As his eyes closed, a hand bearing a potent-smelling cloth clamped over his mouth and nose, sending a jolt of fear through his system. He immediately began to struggle, but the drugs were strong and had soon taken effect, sedating him.
Bakura's face was the first thing Ryou saw when he opened his eyes, and he felt sick to his stomach. He tried to move, but found that his limbs would not obey. His captor grinned and lifted Ryou's left arm, examining it with an admiring gaze.
"You've gotten stronger, Yadonushi," he crooned softly. His tone was too kind, too gentle; it made Ryou nervous. "If I didn't know any better, I would think that you planned on fighting back." The warm purr sent chills down Ryou's spine. His yami chuckled as he watched fear flicker across his victim's face. "But I do know better," he continued, his voice as silky as a smoker's could get. "And I know that you won't fight back, not just because I've drugged you to keep you from resisting, but because you belong to me, and you know it. That's why you didn't leave Domino, didn't run away any further away than a few neighborhoods. You knew I'd come back for you, and some part of you wanted me to find you. Well, here I am and here you are, so, what do you say you and I have a little FUN?"
Bakura's eyes glistened as he dug his fingernails into Ryou's skin. "Wanna play a little game?"
When Joey woke up late next morning, he could tell that something was wrong. Ryou's phones was still plugged in charging on the kitchen counter, the tea mug he always set out for the morning the night before still next to his phone. He didn't take his phone or make tea. That was strange. Had he overslept? Joey, mug of black coffee in hand, went to Ryou's room and knocked on the door. There was no answer, and even as he opened it he remembered that Ryou always left the door to his room open in the morning when he left for work. The bed was a mess—also unusual—and the window was open ever so slightly. Still, no sign of Ryou. This was too weird for Joey to ignore, so he grabbed his cell and dialed Yugi's number. If Ryou was in trouble, then it was time to enlist his friends' help and tell him what had been going on.
Seto held out a hand and helped Mokuba out of the limo, even as he spoke with a foreign business associate in Mandarin on his bluetooth headset. He turned towards the KaibaCorp building, approaching it with his briefcase in one hand with the other in the pocket of his suit when suddenly Mokuba seized his arm and turned him around, crying out something Seto didn't catch due to the Chinese chatter in his ear as his brother pointed towards a passing car. Seto paused mid-sentence as he saw what Mokuba was trying to point out: the head and hands of Ryou Bakura, bound and gagged, were just barely visible in the back window of a nondescript vehicle. Seto's eyes flashed straight to the license plate and committed the code to memory even as he tersely apologized to his associate and hung up. He immediately dialed 9-1-1, putting a comforting arm around his brother's shoulders. Mokuba started shaking as he hugged his brother tightly, clearly distressed as Seto calmly informed the dispatcher of what he'd seen, relaying the identity of the victim, the model of the car, the license plate number, their current location, and the direction the vehicle was heading in. He requested to be informed if there was a successful rescue of the victim, then hung up. He looked down at his upset younger brother and sighed, scooping him up in one arm and carrying him inside, beginning to reassure him that everything would be alright, that the police would find and free Ryou. He had to wonder, though, why the kidnapper would risk driving through the business district in daylight. Granted, it wasn't even six a.m., so fewer people were out and about, but it had been enough that the Kaibas had been there, with Mokuba to notice what was wrong and Seto to do something about it. What mattered most was that Ryou would be rescued and that everything would be alright.
Ryou jumped at every noise, every flash of movement in his peripheral vision as the medics tended to his wounds. They applied salves and creams to his bruises and cuts, bandaging him up to the point where he started to look like a mummy. They had already taken an x-ray and were waiting for the results while they treated all of Ryou's visible injuries. It didn't take long for the images to develop; in fact, it took longer for them to completely treat everything else. They offered him painkillers, but Ryou turned them down, hating the idea of having his faculties even slightly impaired.
When the doctor came back with the x-ray photos, Ryou's heart sank. Three ribs broken, four hairline fractures. They gave him specific instructions about what he could and could not do with broken ribs, giving him specific instructions for how long to ice them and how often. They gave him a small sample pack of potent painkillers and wrote him a prescription for the same. They said that if he could keep from agitating the bones or making them worse, they should be fully healed in two months. If he was still experiencing intense pain at that time, then he would need to come in for a follow up appointment.
The doctor had just finished giving Ryou instructions when a raven-haired blur dashed into the room and threw his arms around Ryou in a hug, making the teen wince quietly. "Bakura, you're alright!" the younger Kaiba exclaimed, looking up with shining eyes at the duelist he'd befriended during the Battle City Tournament and lost touch with in the past year.
"Ah, yes, I'm fine," Ryou answered cheerfully as the doctor retreated from the room, making way for the elder Kaiba. Looking up at his former classmate, he asked perplexedly, "How did you know I was here?"
Seto looked at him in confusion. "You don't remember seeing us as you passed the KaibaCorp headquarters this morning?" he asked, content to cut the crap and get straight to the point.
Ryou smiled ruefully as he pat Mokuba's head. "Sadly, I don't. The doctors say I was drugged, which is why I can't remember anything after, I think, nine o'clock last night or before the police found me this morning, and I'm still having difficulty even recalling that." Ryou looked troubled, and Seto's restless mind set to worry over the problem.
"Have they identified the drug yet?" he asked in his forward manner.
"Not yet, but they have their suspicions." Ryou's cheeks tinged with scarlet as he glanced down at Mokuba to distract himself. He didn't need to tell his peer that he'd been duped with an altered form of a date-rape drug, and he especially didn't need to do so in front of his little brother.
"Do you remember who did this to you?" Seto continued his interrogation, since Ryou didn't seem traumatized and was therefore fully capable of answering his questions.
Ryou would have answered, but he felt Mokuba cling to him tightly. The child was upset by the discussion, which Seto was just starting to pick up on. He pulled out a five dollar bill and handed it to his brother, telling him to get whatever he wanted from the vending machine down the hall.
"Should he go alone?" Ryou asked nervously.
"The guard outside the room will accompany him," Seto answered as he leaned back against the wall and crossed his arms. "Who did this?"
Ryou had to give Seto credit for being persistent, if nothing else. He actually did appreciate Seto's logical approach to this, though. For once, somebody wasn't staring at him with sad puppy eyes full of pity. It was nice to have somebody who saw him as whole, capable, strong. "The Spirit of the Millennium Ring. I should have known that giving him his own body would be a mistake." He finally let his frustration and annoyance flicker across his expression, even as he tried not to reveal the sudden light-headedness that swept over him.
"What do you recall from when the police found you?" Seto seemed determined to pursue the subject to get as many details as possible.
Ryou rubbed his head with a sigh. "The car had been totaled in a side-alley, but he was long gone. I think he totaled it in the police chase. They found me in the trunk, restrained, injured, and only half-conscious. After that, they took me here, and while I was waiting to be seen by a medic, an officer interviewed me to get as much information as possible." He paused. "I told them that the Spirit was my identical twin brother and that he'd gone bad when he got into drug dealing a few years ago, which isn't all false. I was born in England and my birth certificate is in THEIR system, so hopefully they won't notice that I don't actually have a twin brother." He really hoped that this didn't come back to bite him. If the police tried to visit the apartment that was rented in his name, he wouldn't be there. Bakura might be, or he might not, and Ryou couldn't forgive himself if Bakura killed police officers as they attempted to arrest the serial criminal.
Seto was silent, and Ryou could tell that the young CEO was thinking. Mokuba re-entered the room then with a packet of poptarts, a bag of M&Ms, and a roll of lifesavers. He seemed pleased with his legal plunder, and Seto seemed amused by that. "When I arrived at the hospital, I called Yugi and told him you were here. He and Wheeler are on their way." Ryou looked up at Kaiba in surprise. "Call me if you remember anything else," he added, handing Ryou his card. "Come on, Mokuba, we need to get going. I can't be late for my meeting."
"Bye, Ryou! I hope you feel better soon!" Mokuba called as his older brother shepherded him out of the hospital room, leaving Ryou alone with the pills and the pain.
"Ryou, you're alright!" Joey shouted as soon as he caught sight of his friend exiting the hospital, rushing forward to ensnare him in a bear hug. Ryou was immediately grateful that he'd finally give in and taken some of the painkillers. He returned the hug and closed his eyes, relieved to see his best friend again. "I was so worried about you. My old man turned up at the apartment yesterday, dead drunk of course. Apparently he sold you out to Bakura for some cash." The scorn and loathing in his voice was actually somewhat touching, because it spoke to just how much Joey cared for him. "I don't know how those two even knew each other, but I kicked him out then talked to the landlord. Our lease is up in a month, so we have that long to find a new place and move in." He finally released his roommate, only to have Yugi pounce on him next, hugging him more gently but just as enthusiastically as Joey had.
"Yami and I have been worried sick about you," he chastised, sounding upset. Ryou felt guilty as he saw the tears that were gathering in Yugi's eyes, but Yugi just wiped them away with a faint smile. "I'm just so glad that you're okay. I was surprised when Joey told me that you've been staying with him all along." Yugi took a deep breath, then added, "Yami's at work right now otherwise he'd be here too. I texted him to let you know that you've been found. Come on, we need to get you back to the apartment so that you can rest."
Ryou let himself be led to the apartment Yugi and Yami shared, a friend walking on either side. It was weird, but a good kind of weird. While at Yugi's apartment, he ate a decent meal and explained to them the bare bones of what had happened—sparing them the gory and intimate details, of course—and how he'd been saved, pointing out Kaiba's thoughtfulness in not only calling the police and ensuring his rescue, but also in even coming to visit him and offering his help in catching the criminal.
Ryou napped in the late morning, tired after the events of yesterday and last night. When he woke up, Joey'd left for work, and Yugi'd promised him that he was welcome to stay the night if he didn't feel well enough to go back to Joey's place that night. Ryou felt conflicted, wanting to stay and see Yami because after everything he still missed him, and besides it would be rude to leave before he got home. But he also felt nervous about seeing him again after all this time. Ryou had explained to Yugi why he hadn't come to them when he'd left Bakura, and the reasons that he told Yugi were simple enough. But when he was honest with himself, he admitted that there were other reasons that he hadn't accepted their offered help.
At around five o'clock, Yugi announced that he was missing some ingredients for dinner and that he needed to run to the supermarket. He said he'd be back before six, then left Ryou alone in the clean, comfortable apartment.
Minutes later, Yami came home. He dropped his bag on the floor and moved straight towards Ryou, who was sitting on the couch drinking tea. He set down his cup of tea on the coffee-table just as Yami took his face in his hands and kissed him. It only took a moment for Ryou to start returning it.
The kiss was bittersweet, filled with memories of the good times they'd had, and even those good times had been marred with bruises and residual pain. Their relationship had always been bittersweet, and it always would be. Yami gradually lowered himself to the couch beside his long-lost lover, refusing to break the kiss until it was absolutely necessary. Ryou's heart ached as it swelled in response to the tender sweetness Yami had always used in touching the frail angel he loved.
He may be hurt, but he wasn't so frail anymore. Ryou slid over to straddle Yami's lap as they continued the steamy kiss. Yami felt the strength in Ryou's hands as they rested on his shoulders and slid down his chest. Neither of them wanted it to ever end, but their lips finally broke apart when their lungs were burning with a need for oxygen. They sat together, panting as Yami wound his fingers through Ryou's cascade of white locks and Ryou leaned his head against Yami's shoulder.
"Why didn't you come to us?" Yami's pained whisper plucked at Ryou's heartstrings. "I was afraid you were dead."
"Because I couldn't put you in danger. I knew he would come looking for me here, and I couldn't risk either of you knowing anything about my whereabouts. He always knows when he's being lied to. I needed to disappear. I didn't know where I was going when I left, and I got mugged, but Joey found me and took me home. He's helped me get back on my feet, taught me how to fight back in case I ever saw Bakura again. I didn't intend to end up at his place, but it worked out. I'm doing really well with him." He sighed, his lips brushing across Yami's neck, making the other man gasp. "And… and Bakura really started screwing with my head after he separated us," Ryou murmured sadly against the former pharaoh's skin. "I'm still trying to untangle the truth from the lies in all that he told me. He tried to make me believe that you'd never loved me."
"Did he succeed?" Yami couldn't help but ask as the pain mounted in his chest.
"He got bloody damn close," Ryou swore, making Yami's skin prickle. He didn't know why, but for some reason hearing the coarse language tossed out nonchalantly by the good, innocent, Catholic-school boy turned Yami on. "He certainly made me believe that I wasn't worthy of your love. Deep down I always knew that you would never lie and lead me on like that."
Yami looped his arms around Ryou's waist, letting out a small sigh. "So, what now? Would you be willing to move in with us?"
Ryou sighed, struggling with the conflict inside of himself. "I hate cutting between you and Yugi like this. You two are so perfect for each other, and my presence would just make jealousy inevitable. I don't want to cause more strife for you two than is necessary."
Yami wasn't happy to hear his answer, but he could respect it. Besides, Ryou was stronger now. He was free from his yami, and he'd gained a strong sense of confidence and purpose. He knew who he was and what he was doing with himself, with his life. Yami didn't like losing Ryou under any circumstances, but if he had to lose him, these were the most favorable circumstances he could wish for.
"Can I just have one more night, Ryou?" he pleaded faintly. "One last time?" After months of uncertainty, wondering, and worrying, he wanted to embrace his broken angel and make love to him once more before saying goodbye for good.
It was barely five in the morning when Ryou wrote a brief note to Yami and Yugi on a napkin, leaving it on the fridge with a magnet and a twenty dollar bill from his wallet before slipping out of their apartment, paying them back for the money they'd lent him. He felt regret, shame, grief, and that bittersweetness he'd known to expect. He wished that he had the courage to face them, to say goodbye and thank them in person. He wished that he didn't regret spending one last night with his former lover. They'd been seeing each other for so long, but Ryou knew that it was wrong for him to stay. He swallowed down one of the percocet pills the doctor had given him, the pain in his chest almost unendurable after their activities last night. He should've known better than to stay. It made the emotional and physical pains in his chest too intense, too much to bear.
Yugi, a light sleeper, was roused by the small amount of noise he heard in the kitchen. He slipped out of bed and cracked open his bedroom door in time to see Ryou slipping out of the apartment, closing the door quietly behind himself. Yugi wished him well, wherever life took him.
When Ryou entered Joey's apartment, he tried to be as quiet as possible. He knew that Joey had only been home for a couple of hours and that he must be sleeping at the moment. He always got out of work late, preferring to work the afternoon, evening, and late night shifts for some reason. As Ryou flopped down onto his bed, he let out a groan. He really wasn't feeling too well. Had he taken too much medicine to try and cope with the pain he'd been stupid enough to induce with sex? Probably. He hauled himself to his feet and walked over to his windows, making sure they were closed and locked before he closed the blinds and shuffled out of his clothes. Feeling nauseous and dizzy, as if he'd gotten another concussion, he collapsed into bed, curling up among the sheets and squeezing his eyes shut to make the world stop spinning. At least he didn't have work today; he would have to call in though to let them know what had happened. The fractures were bad enough that he wasn't supposed to work for at least a few weeks. He didn't know if he truly fell asleep, but he did eventually drift into unconsciousness in his shadowy bedroom.
Joey called in sick to work the next day. He never called in sick when he actually was sick, because he never thought it was worth it, but it was definitely worth it to call in sick for Ryou's sake. Sure, the British boy had put on a brave face for him and Yugi yesterday, but Joey was attuned enough to Ryou's moods and expressions now to tell when he was faking it. Ryou was just barely holding on after the forty-eight hours he'd spent in his yami's clutches.
When Ryou still hadn't emerged from his room by noon, Joey decided to check on him. He rapped on the door gently before cracking the door open. The room was still dark, and Ryou lifted his head to look up at Joey. His eyes looked hollow, and yesterday's smile was nowhere to be seen.
"Hey pal, how are you feeling?" Joey asked with a smile, not trying to pretend that everything was alright, but trying to cheer him up a bit all the same. He entered the room and approached his friend as Ryou dropped his head back to the pillow.
"Awful," Ryou grumbled. He rubbed the bandage on his upper right arm, the one that hid a neat row of stitches from where he'd been impaled with glass from the car's windows. "The pain is unbearable, but the painkillers make me feel like I'm simultaneously hungover and drunk."
Joey couldn't recall ever seeing Ryou this surly before (or ever seeing him hungover or drunk for that matter); it was actually quite amusing to see him pout and gripe about his current situation, even if the situation itself was nothing to laugh about. He gingerly sat on the edge of the bed, inhaling deeply before asking a question he'd been putting off ever since he'd found Ryou in the alleyway: "What exactly was going on between you and Bakura? I don't mean what happened yesterday, but back when you were living together, right before I found you."
Ryou stared up at Joey with wide eyes, unhappy memories flickering through his mind. He looked away to stare at the wall, letting out a sigh. "He was never a kind person," Ryou began with difficulty. "I just didn't know he was this cruel. It started with him just pushing me around a bit. A few bruises here and there, but nothing too serious. It didn't interfere with how I went about my life. Then he got… angry, or maybe he was always that way, and I just didn't realize it. He started beating me, threatening me, bossing me around and not letting me out of the apartment. He yelled a lot, but I tried not to let it bother me." He paused, his breath catching in his throat. "He once threw me down a set of stairs." He began to feel nervous as he contemplated whether or not to tell Joey about his "affair" with Yami. After all, it had been a crucial impetus in destroying Ryou's life, but then again, it had also been a secret between Yugi, Ryou, and their yamis. Ryou pulled a pillow up over his face, hiding the way his eyes watered. "I'm sorry, I can't…" he choked out before he needed to stop.
A moment later, he felt Joey gently pulling him into a sitting position and tugging him into a gentle hug. "It's okay, I know, these kinds of things are hard to talk about."
Ryou couldn't talk, but his arms were wrapped tightly around his best friend, his shaking hands gripping fistfuls of Joey's shirt tightly as he tried desperately not to cry. Joey felt like something was horribly wrong. Bakura had done more than just beat up Ryou on a daily basis, he could tell. It sickened him to recall Ryou's state upon finding him in the alley. The slashed wrists, the prominent ribs, the many bruises, the cigarette burns, the hunted look in his eyes. He felt Ryou clasp him even more tightly as his shoulders shook, and Joey decided to keep his mouth shut, just let Ryou work things out inside himself.
Ryou's arms loosened momentarily as he adjusted his hold, taking in a deep, shuddering breath before letting it out. He buried his face in Joey's chest, letting the musky, masculine scent soothe him even as he started to cry. "He's a monster," he whispered, finally finding the words inside himself to voice what he felt. "A sadist. I don't… I don't understand how he can enjoy hurting people so much…" He sniffled, and Joey's hand tentatively caressed the back of Ryou's head. "He cut my wrists, you know," he continued through the tears. "I think he was trying to make me start doing it on my own, but I never did. I couldn't let him win." He was sobbing outright now, and the words spilled from his lips just as the tears spilled down his cheeks. "He would take me… by force, and whenever I said no, he'd hit me with his belt. I… I didn't know how much longer I could last…"
Ryou dissolved into violent tears, and Joey shushed him gently, regretting that he'd even asked in the first place. The last thing he wanted was to upset Ryou or make things any harder for him than they already were. He saw now that Bakura had damaged Ryou's mind much more than he'd ever hurt his body. "You're safe now, pal," he whispered, daring to press an affectionate kiss to the top of his friend's head.
"I'm not safe until he's dead," Ryou sobbed grimly, burying himself in Joey's presence as much as possible, perfectly willing to lose his sense of self in Joey's upbeat, dependable, yet impulsive, personality. Even as Ryou cursed himself for developing a crush on his flatmate, he reveled in his presence. Those words turned over and over in Joey's mind. While he wouldn't—and couldn't—kill Bakura or bring about his death, perhaps there was something else he could do that was just as good.
"Would some distance help?" Joey asked suddenly as he absent-mindedly stroked Ryou's hair in a reassuring manner.
Ryou lifted his tear-stained face to blink up at him questioningly. "What do you mean?"
"I mean would you feel better moving out of Domino, putting some distance between you and him, between you and the place where the bad things happened. The lease runs out in just one more month, so if we can find an apartment in another town by then, we could move pretty soon."
"You'd… you'd do that for me?" Ryou wiped at his eyes as he processed Joey's words. He'd said we. We could move to another town.
"Of course! We're buddies, right? Besides, I think one of the places I work at is about to run itself out of business any day now. We can look at a map, pick a town, go job-huntin', find a place we could rent for a decent price, and just leave. Bakura'll neveh know, and then you can feel safe again." Joey grinned as he watched Ryou's face take on an expression of gratitude and surprise, his mouth opening and closing as if he didn't know what to say. Finally, though the words broke free from his lips.
"Thank you, Joey!" he cried as he clasped his arms around Joey's neck, ignoring the pain in his chest and the way the world around him seemed to spin. "Thank you, thank you, thank you…"
"You're welcome," the blond answered graciously, smiling ear to ear. He was happy to have pleased Ryou so much, pleased when his companion kissed his cheek on impulse.
Ryou was so happy that the only thing restraining him from kissing Joey full on the lips was the dizziness the percocet had induced and that was now sweeping over him full-force. He swayed unsteadily in his friend's arms, and thankfully Joey noticed and placed a hand on his shoulder to steady him.
"Are you feelin' alright?" he asked, concerned.
"Yeah, just… dizzy," Ryou murmured, rubbing at his eyes again as he suppressed a yawn. He'd gotten little sleep last night, having forced himself awake at an early hour so that he could flee undetected and then lain awake in his own bed for hours contemplating the pain and regret and fear that the events of the past few days had reawakened in him. Joey gently lay him down once more, and while Ryou was reluctant to let go of the one thing keeping him steady, he made himself do so. Although Joey let go of him, he stayed rather close to Ryou.
"You haven't eaten all morning, have you?" Ryou shook his head. "Could I get you something to eat? Maybe soup, or a sandwich?"
"A sandwich sounds good," Ryou answered after a moment, not even knowing why he was blushing. As Joey left to make them both some lunch, Ryou pondered their entire conversation. Something had changed between them, he could feel it. Joey had crossed the first line when he'd kissed Ryou's hair, then Ryou'd crossed the next line when he kissed Joey's cheek. He had feelings for Joey, that much he knew. Was it possible that Joey had feelings for him too? He hoped so, yet there was a tiny bit of him that feared it too. He didn't want to love again only to have Bakura show up and ruin things. What if Bakura found out and hurt Joey? What if he killed him? The very thought of it made Ryou's blood run cold.
Meanwhile, Joey was relieved that Ryou had agreed to eating something. While he'd said that Bakura had been the one starve him, he didn't want the idea of starving himself to creep into Ryou's mind. He'd seen how rattled Ryou'd been when he'd heard Bakura's words in Mr. Wheeler's mouth, and he didn't want a small, temporary hunger to keep reminding him of what else Bakura had done to him. He'd made it his personal mission to help fix Ryou until he'd erased as many traces of Bakura's abuse as was possible. Yet, he seemed to find himself falling for his friend along the way. He wasn't sure if it was a good thing or not, but he was content to let things run their natural course and just see what happened.
When Yami awoke that morning, he was devastated to find that Ryou had left without saying a proper goodbye. There'd been so much more that he wanted to tell him, so much more that he wanted to do to help him. He'd felt last night the damage that had been done in the one day he'd been captured, and when he'd mentioned it, Ryou hadn't seemed to care. He was used to that pain, didn't even know that there was a way to heal the damage, and had insisted that Yami continue with what he was doing. Unfortunately, he'd been successful in that, and now Yami wished that he'd had the self-control to stop, to ask what had happened, to tend to the injury properly.
He'd been raped by his bastard of a yami. That was the only possible explanation for such a fresh rectal tear. The pharaoh had even thought that he felt older scars as well, indicating that it had happened before. They hadn't been there the last time Yami and Ryou had met up at the hotel, which meant that Yami Bakura had been raping him for that whole month between his last visit with Ryou and when Ryou had run away. Just thinking about it made the pharaoh furious, but it broke his heart even more when he realized that whatever pain Ryou had felt last night—great as it must have been—must have been significantly inferior to whatever pain Bakura had inflicted on him. Either that, or Bakura had turned his hikari into a masochist.
Both possibilities nauseated Yami, who kept all of these thoughts to himself for the rest of the day, but ended up confiding in Yugi that evening over dinner. He never lied to Yugi, after all, and he hated hiding anything from him. He'd never even tried to hide his affair with Ryou; in fact, he'd asked Yugi for permission right off the bat, explaining that Ryou was lonely and mistreated, that he needed the affection and that it was for his own good, that Yami still loved Yugi above all else.
Yugi became concerned as Yami confessed what he'd discovered last night. "But, he talked to the police about what happened, and he was at the hospital. Did he not tell them what had happened?"
"I suppose not," Yami sighed. "I can see why it would be a difficult thing to admit to, though. I wonder if he even told Joey about that happening."
"If he didn't tell the police or the nurses, I wouldn't be surprised if he hadn't," Yugi said sadly, then reached across the table to give Yami's hand a squeeze, making his partner smile. "Don't worry too much about him, though, okay? He's a lot stronger now than he was before, and Joey's been a great influence on him. I think he's going to be alright."
Their conversation turned to other things as they continued to eat, but as they cuddled on the couch afterward, each with a glass of wine in hand, something occurred to Yami that made him bring the topic up again.
"Joey and Ryou… Do you think there's something between them?" Yami asked thoughtfully.
"Well, I doubt they are in a serious relationship, otherwise he wouldn't have stayed the night. Besides, they didn't act like they were a couple when we were hanging out," Yugi answered, recalling the details of yesterday. "I wouldn't be surprised, though, if they became a couple soon. There were some moments now and then when one of them would look at the other with a little smile, like they knew a secret or something. Ryou was a little more obvious about it, though I doubt he meant to be," Yugi added before taking a sip of his merlot. "I could see them making a good couple. Like I said, Joey's good for Ryou, but the converse is also true. I think having Ryou around has helped Joey to mature a bit. I've never seen either of them doing so well, despite the circumstances."
Yami kissed Yugi's cheek with a smile as he let those words sink into him. He felt much better letting go of Ryou if he was releasing him into Joey's strong hands. He was finally able to let go of the persistent nag of worry deep in his soul, and for the first time in almost a year, he was free from concern. Yugi blinked up at his partner in surprise, then leaned forward and, with an adorable smile, rubbed his nose against the pharaoh's.
"I love you," they both said simultaneously, making them laugh with sheer joy as they relaxed into the comfort of their domestic bliss.
Author Notes: I hope you enjoyed the update! Seto will be back in the next chapter as well, so stick around for that, if nothing else! The puffshipping will develop a bit more, and I might actually be leaving the puzzleshipping where it is, though I do seem to keep coming back to it at the end of each chapter. ;) Let me know what you think of it so far, and I hope you choose to follow this story!