Yami spent the next few days letting the piece of paper burn a hole in his pocket. Even though Tea gave him her number, he still couldn't muster the courage to text her. He assumed that it meant that she was interested in hanging out, but he felt hesitant, even nervous about contacting her. It felt so bold, even more so than everything he had already tried so far.

Yuugi noticed Yami's reluctance and continued to hound his doppelganger for his cowardice. That was what it was at this point. Of course, the more his younger cousin hassled him, the less he felt inclined to text Tea. He wanted things to develop naturally between the two – he certainly didn't need family meddling in the matter.

Almost a week later, Yuugi asked Yami to hang out, almost as if to apologize for his behavior earlier that week. Yami shrugged and figured why not. He was still trying to figure out how to keep things going with Tea (despite the obvious) and perhaps an outing away from music and his students would help.

He and Yugi left his apartment to go to the museum. It wasn't the first activity he would have gone with, but he wasn't picky. It was easier to let Yuugi suggest what they do. Of course, the moment they got there, Yuugi had to run to use the restroom. Yami rolled his eyes, letting his cousin take care of business beforehand.

It was only as Yami noticed that several minutes had passed that he started to puzzle as to what was taking Yuugi so long. He felt his phone buzz as he received a text. He blinked when he saw that Yuugi sent him a text. He had just opened it when a voice caught his ear, his heart skipping a beat.

"Hey Yami! There you are!"

Yami snapped his head up, his ears burning as he saw those bright blue eyes. "Tea? How are you?" Yami struggled to keep his voice from inflecting upwards, confused as to why Tea seemed to be expecting him.

"I'm great. Ready to go?"

Yami kept his face blank, hoping that he came off as pensive rather than baffled. He glanced down at his phone, already suspecting what had happened. He glanced down to read the text from his cousin.

"You can thank me later. And remember – no hickeys!"

Yami sighed, tilting his head back at the sky. Yugi, you little-

"Everything okay?"

Yami snapped his head back as Tea watched him with concern. Yami shook his head, embarrassed and annoyed by his cousin. Of course this wasn't just to hang out. It was his cousin's dastardly plan. And yet for some reason, he suspected he would be thanking Yuugi later.

I hate it when he's right.

"I'm fine. Shall we go?"


Yami, not knowing what to expect, essentially ended up following Tea to a diner to grab milkshakes. According to Tea, they had (apparently) texted setting up a date. Which meant that Yugi somehow knew the password to his phone and decided to set up a date without Yami's knowledge.

Yami was going to reset Yugi's Pokémon file the next time he stopped by his apartment.

Yami sighed, glancing out the window. Would it have killed him to leave the messages so I could know what I'm doing today? He felt like an idiot for not knowing what was planned on their date. Tea was cheerful and filling the air between them, but Yami was internally panicking as he tried to guess what Yugi would have set up for them.

"Hey, Yami? Are you okay? You seem a bit spacey today." Tea's voice brought Yami's attention front and center. He snapped his head back, realizing that his brooding was probably seen as dismissive towards his date.

"I'm sorry. I was distracted… um… what were we talking about?" Yami, though usually fairly adept at masking his emotions, knew his the bridge of his nose burned red. The fact that he was actually on a date, a goddamn date, with Tea hadn't sunk in. Years of beating around the bush suddenly paid off because his cousin was a braver person than himself.

Not that he would admit that to Tea first.

"I was just wondering what you wanted to go do next. Was there any shops that you wanted to check out?" Yami pursed his lips, thinking about the question. Intentional or not, Tea just provided him an out on how the rest of this date would play out.

And of course, he had no idea what he wanted to do.

What would Tea like to do? Girls liked shopping, right? Yami thought about suggesting such a venture but feared that he would end up as the bag carrier in the process. The idea of going clothes shopping sounded dreadful. They could check out a museum, but then they would have to be quiet and respectful of the other patrons. They could go outside, but there was a chance it could rain.

Yuugi has told me that I'm a picky SOB. I never gave it much thought until now. Yami took another sip of his milkshake before looking back up at Tea. Despite the opportunity to decide what to do on their date, Yami ended up giving back the control to Tea. Perhaps she could guess something that would be fun for both of them. "I'm not too picky. Was there something you wanted to check out?"

Tea thought for a moment before reaching down into her purse. She flipped through some pamphlets before settling on one. She slid it across the table to Yami, a blush growing on her face. "Well, I'm not sure if this is something you're into, but they're holding a game expo at the Black Crown Game Shop. A ton of stuff will be on sale and I was hoping to get some updated graphic cards for the MMO I'm into."

Had Yami not been already sitting, he might have collapsed. He stared in wonder and shock at Tea's sentence. Truly, she was a woman after his heart. "Holy shit, that sounds amazing!"

Tea's blush faded, a tentative smile growing on her face. "I had hoped you might be interested. Typically guys are a safer bet on these sort of things… So, you ready to roll?"

Yami nodded as he got up, taking his milkshake with him as the two headed out. The fact that Tea was into MMO's sparked hope in him. As soon as they stepped outside, Yami let a small smile slip onto your face. "So you're a gamer? I hadn't pegged you as such."

Tea just shrugged, though Yami noticed as she fiddled with her bracelet to avoid looking over at him. "I hung out with nerds in high school. I joined a Pathfinders group by senior year and I was hooked. Since they finally made Monster World into an MMO, I decided to hop over."

"Oh my god, Monster World. I haven't played that in forever."

"You should join. Ryou pulled some of us from the theater to form a squad. Joey and Tristan are part of it. And frankly, we could use a healer, if that's your thing."

Yami glanced away, skeptical of his good luck. The fact that they shared so many interests in common was mindboggling. Professional artist, snarky humor, avid gamer – if Tea said that she was a Stranger Things junkie, Yami would swear the gods had somehow designed the perfect woman in flesh.

"I usually don't play support, but I have a fairly decent build for a white wizard. Perhaps that would suffice?"

Tea giggled, giving Yami a knowing look. "We won't complain about more healing. Though heads up – that's Ryou's usual class."

"You already have a white wizard?"

"Nah, he decided to be a thief this time. I'm just warning you that he might judge you hardcore if he thinks your build sucks."

Yami chuckled, a smirk growing on his face. "That won't be a problem. I take my gaming as seriously as I do my music."

Tea grinned. "Shit, I better warn the guys, then. They never take anything seriously, even in-game."

Yami stole a glance over at Tea, enjoying the light smile on her face. "Mind if I inquire as to the team build?"

Tea paused as she recalled. "Joey's a warrior. Tristan's a martial artist. Duke's hit or miss when he can make it, but he's our merchant." Tea smiled as she met Yami's gaze. "I'm the bard of the team."

"The professional dancer is the bard? That sounds about right."

"Shut up. We can't all escape the tropes of our real-life existence."

Yami laughed but let the issue go, sparing Tea any further harassment.


An hour later, Yami found himself still at the Black Crown game shop. In addition to video games, the shop also had comics and a variety of card games to examine. This was a pleasant surprise as Yami was a Duel Monsters junkie. He was examining a few cards he had obtained, considering how to update his deck accordingly to get back at Yuugi.

Tea sat near Yami, herself engrossed in a comic she had gotten alongside her new graphic card. Surprisingly, this was the first lull in their date. The conversation flowed easily between the two as they discussed their nerdy interests.

Now as they sat next to each other, Yami felt a small smile grow on his face. Perhaps it was forward of him, but he couldn't help but imagine the two of them hanging out like this at home. After a long day of rehearsals and lessons, they could come back and enjoy the quiet company of each other at the end of the day. Perhaps if they were daring, they would game together on their smurf accounts for shits and giggles.

Slow down, tiger. You have to get through this date first. Yami reprimanded himself, putting his cards back into their cases. He turned back to Tea, her blue eyes fixed as she immersed herself in the drama of the Phoenix saga. He knew he was staring, but he didn't feel repentant. It was only when Tea's cheeks grew pink that he realized she was aware of his gaze.

"Enjoying the view?" Tea teased, her eyes flicking up to meet his violet ones. A comment like that would have left Yami flustered around his crush a week prior. As he grew more comfortable around Tea, he found it easier to keep his usual detached demeanor. He smirked, leaning back in a nonchalant manner.

"Certainly better than any scenery this place can offer." Yami raised an eyebrow as he saw Tea roll her eyes, a smirk growing on her face as well.

"Are you always this articulate around women?"

"Ha. Never. I let the piano do the talking for me whenever I can. You don't need to be good at conversation if you can play an instrument."

Tea snickered, nodding in appreciation. "Isn't that the truth. I don't know how many chorus girls have asked me if you're single after rehearsal."

Yami raised an eyebrow. This was news to him. "I didn't realize I was so popular in the theatre."

"Please. You're the quiet, aloof pianist at rehearsal. Of course, you'd be the star."

Yami shrugged. Apparently, his attitude towards the daily grind of rehearsal made him seem cooler than he was. This reaffirmed his perceived perspective of himself. "What do you tell them when they ask about my single status?"

Tea froze at that remark as if realizing she had been caught. Yami watched, now curious as to her reaction. She bit her lip before glancing away, almost embarrassed. "I tell them you're seeing someone."

"… You lie to them?"

Tea pretended to think about her answer. "It's not a lie. Music is a jealous mistress, after all."

Yami chuckled, a grin growing on his face. He understood the implications of Tea's little untruth. "Smooth."

"Shut up. You weren't going to ask anyone out, so it's not like I hurt your chances."

"I didn't realize you were the jealous, possessive type."

"I'm not!" Tea's face was now burning red. Yami couldn't help laughing out loud. This had turned out to be a rather unexpected twist. What a pleasant surprise this turned out to be. Still, he shouldn't tease Tea so much about her apparent crush on him. How could he when he had been a coward for so long? The whole reason they were out today was because Tea decided to make a move.

Perhaps he should meet her in the middle.

"For what it's worth, it all worked out." Yami started, glancing away. He could feel Tea's eyes focused on him, the blush fading from her cheeks. The color seemed to have transferred to Yami's ears, which he sure was burning red as he struggled to keep his complexion neutral. He pursed his lips before continuing. "I mean, we're here now, right?"

He flicked his gaze back up, his stomach a twisting, turning mess. Tea blinked, before a soft giggle slipped past her lips, almost bashful and shy in nature. She wrung her hands in her lap, a small smile on her face. "Yeah. All's well that ends well."

Yami felt his heart hammering in his chest, his hand twitching as he struggled to figure out what to do next. Perhaps it wasn't the right time, but he decided to take a gamble. He reached his hand forward, taking Tea's slender hand in his own. Her head snapped up, almost surprised by the gesture.

Yami couldn't meet her gaze, feeling far too nervous to admit it. He would rather perform in front of a thousand large audience blindfolded than face whatever reaction may come forward. At least he knew what to expect when he performed. He knew what would happen because he knew himself and what he was capable.

The results were far more unpredictable regarding a crush who may tentatively return his feelings.

He felt Tea's hand shift, her fingers interlocking with his. Yami didn't look over, but he could tell that Tea was also looking away as well. Even without looking, he could sense her happiness and her smile from his periphery. And that thought allowed a smile to grow on his face. The two sat there in silence, content to be holding hands.

Yami felt his chest finally start to cease its erratic palpitations, his breathing finally more relaxed. He bit back a chuckle, a sense of elation washing over him. Tea's right. All's well that ends well.