Author's Note: Sorry
to impede you on your merry way to reading this fic, but I wanted to
give a heartfelt shout-out to darkrunner. I appreciate your
reviews very, very much! I'll admit that I did not have a
beta-reader for this fic, and I'm going to go back on the original
document and fix the grammatical errors. I've been told on other
projects that I have problems with verb tense and putting past- and
present-tense together where they're not supposed to, so I'll
have to keep a watchful eye on that.
I, also, was surprised to see
the fic is not geting as many reviews as the first time (I had
originally submitted it a year or so ago on a different account and
the reviews were just pouring in!), but I'm still thankful! Thank
you again for your enthusiastic reviews!!
Don't lost hope, my friends…… Jounouchi is not through with his surprise appearances yet!
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The crash woke me up.
I'm pretty sure it was a crash. Like a bowl or a glass. Something broken. I rubbed my eyes and turned over on my other side, listening hard just in case it was a burglar or maybe…maybe it's him! I pulled the comforter up to my neck, barely breathing and wide awake. He's off somewhere far away and there's no way he could get in my room. See Mai? No reason to worry, right?
There were footsteps, bare feet stepping on the hardwood floor. The kitchen. Wait…wasn't something broken? If there's any glass pieces on the ground, Yugi may step on it and cut himself. Wouldn't that top it all off? A trip to the hospital, some white-coat assholes with PhDs label him as a patient, and we all get the run-around for weeks about bills. Aw, man. Yugi, please, don't step on any gla––
"Ow!"
"Aw, shit," I muttered under my breath. There went that! I silently pushed the blanket to the side of the couch. The half-busted digital clock on the coffee table read 4am with its obnoxiously bright green numbers. 4am?! What on earth is Yugi doing up at this hour? Is he some dinnerware thief or something? Oh God, my head…
I looked over the couch to the kitchen area just as Yugi opened the refrigerator door. The door opened so that it was facing me and Yugi couldn't see the rest of the room. I sneaked up behind it and waited while leaning up against the wall with a headache splitting my head in two. What was he doing up at this hour? I don't have any sweets or cake or anything for him to eat like that. He'll have to have some snacks but……oooh! I need an aspirin!
"Ahhh!" Yugi screamed in surprise when he shut the door to see me behind it. The milk carton he had been holding in his hands went flying backwards, spilling its contents over everything. Funny what such a simple twist of the wrist can do. Yugi clasped his hand over his chest and took in air in short breathing gasps.
It's too early for this. That scream definitely did not help my headache. I stared at Yug indifferently and yawned. Yugi blushed.
"I'm sorry," he mumbled next-to-inaudibly. "I'll clean up." He grabbed some paper towel off next to the stove and wiped up all the spilled milk. He turned the carton over back to its right-side-up position and put it on the counter. A third of it had spilled out, but Yugi cleaned the mess up pretty good so that you couldn't tell anything had happened. When he was done and had deposited the paper towel in the trash, he turned to me. He pointed to the cupboard, nothing needed to be said. I nodded, by which time I was now clutching my head in agony. Yugi poured us both a glass of milk and found me some aspirin. Yah, he really can be a helper sometimes. I'll probably be up all night now with the caffeine but whatever…not that I care at the present moment.
We sipped our drink in silence for a moment or two before Yugi asked, "Did I wake you?"
"I heard a crash…" I trailed off. He looked down shamefully.
"I broke your salt-shaker. I'm sorry. I knocked into it with my elbow as I was getting to the fridge. I cleaned up the glass, just poked my finger a bit." I nodded, took another sip of my cold drink. It froze my lungs and I had to close my eyes to calm my head and heart.
"Why are you up?" I inquired.
"Thirsty…and I couldn't sleep."
"Anzu?"
He looked at me a little taken aback, but then he nodded his head down before sighing. He gulped down a tremendous amount of his milk in a single swallow and continued to empty his troubled mind onto me. By all means, I have no problems to sort out myself or anything so I'll just help you with yours, Yugi. Boy, am I a hypocrite or what? I long for help and feel reluctant to give it. Dammit, Kujaku! Get over yourself!
"It's just…" Yug grew even more restless, "I can't stop thinking about her and I don't feel like going back to Domino without her. It just…wouldn't feel right. I miss her already and I don't know how I'm supposed to just go on while she's away…Mai!"
"Hmm?"
"W-what am I supposed to d-do?"
You're supposed to shut up and leave her to be lonely because maybe she left for a reason and she was just following her dream even if I meant giving up seeing your smile everyday and your funny golden hair and brown eyes…
"Follow her, Yugi."
He looked at me, dumbstruck. I was a little at myself, but I didn't dare show it.
"I want to go follow her!" he exasperated. "I want to go to Toronto and stay with her until her movie's done. But, would Jou 'n everyone else understand? It would be like abandoning him and everyone and I don't want to do that. Mai, what should I do?"
Don't leave everyone and become heartless…like I did.
"Follow her, Yugi." He laughed a nervous type of laughter.
"That simple, huh?"
"Yes." I held no expression in my voice.
"Are you kidding?"
"What do you think?"
He was silent a while, considering. Suddenly, he began talking to himself with growing energy. "…can I go? It'll only be a couple months. I can leave and then come back home with her if she wants to go home or maybe we'll stay in the states for awhile I'm sure she wouldn't mind me hanging around then I'll call Jou to tell him and Shizuka and omigosh!"
Yugi was getting more and more excited by the second. Hyper-mode took over and soon he was thanking me up a storm. I figured hell with it and I gave Yug a hug. He laughed, saying now he wouldn't be able to get to sleep for a totally different reason! He'd leave the day after tomorrow and––
The day after tomorrow.
The day after this night came to pass, he was going to leave me and I'd be alone again. Is that how it's meant to be? All alone while the days pass by endlessly, leading nowhere?
Oh…my headache…
Yugi…Yugi why is it getting darker and darker?
…Yu…gi…?
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Yugi told me the next morning that I'd passed out. I don't remember exactly…I just know that I was falling into the darkness within. I blamed it on me being tired, Yug blamed it on stress, and that was that. By morning it was forgotten, or at least I hoped. The conversation probably wasn't though, but Yug won't be around long enough anymore to pursue anything to that end. Doesn't matter.
Yugi bought his tickets on the phone by the time I woke up. I spent the last day I had with him touring a small section of the downtown area, my treat. Yug bought me a salt shaker in one of the shops. He really can be a sweetheart when he wants to. It was amazing the way time passed so quickly. Before I knew it, the time for his departure came. And so, here I am, sitting in the lobby with Yugi and his suitcase. Yugi said I didn't have to wait with him for the plane, but I did. I knew Yugi wanted me to anyway.
"Does Anzu know you're coming?" I asked him. Yugi shook his head, grinning secretively.
"I want to surprise her," he beamed. I nodded, now completely out of conversational material. Just then the intercom went on. It spoke some weird thing in Spanish before announcing the flights.
"Now boarding! Flight 896 Toronto, Canada now boarding!" Yugi got up and grabbed a hold of his suitcase. I stood up too, preparing to say goodbye. My insides were killing me. I hate goodbyes. Honestly, I really do.
"Mai…" Yug gave me a hug. "It was really nice to see ya. Thanks for your advice and everything."
"Anytime," I heard myself say. I tried to sound enthusiastic, but it wasn't working very well. "Thanks for coming to see me."
"I promise to keep in touch." I nodded back to him generally. I'm so sure. Remember me with a card or a letter…something quick and snappy because every once in a while someone remembers I'm here in America. One more thing they have to deal with. Whatever. Dammit now I'm pissed off.
"Mai," Yugi reached into his suitcase for something, interrupting my very rude thoughts. "There's one last thing."
Huh? One last thing? What one last thing? Why the hell is this coming up now?! What am I doing, being so mean? Once Yugi is gone, I'll have all the time in the world to think up comments. I'd better stop it. What if Yugi starts worrying about me again before he leaves? I can't have that.
I gave a sigh, putting on this smile that made my cheeks hurt. I was trying to convince Yugi I'd be fine. Just fine.
Yugi finally handed over from his backpack a little box wrapped in pale green wrapping paper with silver tinsel all over it spelling out "Merry Christmas." The red bow on top was smushed, but that was okay I guess. I took it, stunned, into my one trembling hand. A thought struck me and I casually asked Yugi if it was a pepper shaker to go with my new salt one he'd bought me. He laughed.
"No, this one's a Christmas present from Jou. I promised him I'd give it to you on Christmas, but it turns out I won't be staying here that long ha ha."
My heart stopped. I swear it did.
"It's…it's from Jou?" I asked. Yugi smiled, nodding. Now my heart was pounding incredibly fast. I didn't know whether to thank Yugi or shoot him for not telling me up until now. I resided on the thanking him. I greedily sat down and put all my attention on opening the package. After peeling away the decorated paper and cardboard box top, there was a dazzling crystal necklace with a violet gem centered in the middle. I was breathless and I didn't know what to say. I turned to Yugi, about to tell him to take it back because I didn't deserve it. I didn't deserve to be on Jou's mind at all.
"He worked so hard to afford it," Yug told me before I could speak. "He said he wanted to see the expression on your face when you opened it, but he didn't have enough money left for a trip here…plus with Shizuka getting sick and all. See? He's never really far from you."
I looked at Yugi again, realizing I could never do away with such a gift, and gave him a huge hug. Then I had to choke back my tears because I couldn't stand to see Yugi see me cry. He let me go and put his suitcase strap across his shoulder. He began to slowly walk away.
"Anything he would have gotten me I would have loved!" I assured Yugi while he was still in earshot. My cheeks were hot and I felt so dizzy. Yug turned around a last time, side-smiling.
"I know," he said. And then he disappeared into the crowds of people heading towards the airway gates. I looked down at my gift and stared at it with the most incredibly weird feeling settled in my stomach. I…I never got him anything. The thought never even occurred to me to get him a Christmas present at all. I've got to be the most selfish person in the world.
I covered the necklace back over with the box cover and then the un-ripped half of the wrapping paper. After that, I just cried into my hands. Cried and cried in the middle of the airport lobby, but no one really saw. No one really cared. I could have been surrounded by a million people; I was still all alone. And the only thing going through my head was why did I leave?
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A/N: I've only submitted one chapter this time because it was a little lengthier than the others. I was originally going to cut off right before you found out what the gift was, so I'm being merciful today (haha, just kidding). There's still more! Please keep reviewing! Thank you!!