Hello! Hope everyone is having a lovely winter break :D

"I- I'm kissing you…"

'Maybe Yugi changes in these situations like he does in duels,' Téa thought.

Yami appeared frustrated with her understanding of things, "No, Téa, you were kissing Yugi," he snapped angrily.

Téa realized she may need to drop the idea that they are the same person, "Well… What's wrong with that?"

"What's wrong with it? You have been sending him mixed signals for years, and now this? He finally moved on, and you're pulling him back in again. Why do you continue to hurt him?" His eyes were so passionate and firm, Téa was terrified to answer. Yugi stood behind the Pharaoh, watching, confused as ever.

Téa finally found her voice again, "But I… But I like him, I-"

"It's too late. You're just hurting him by doing this. You should have acted sooner, when he really needed you to."

She was getting angry, "Hey, how is this any of your business, anyway?"

He shook his head, "My business? How is it not my business? I know his every thought and emotion. I've seen how he has suffered over you, and I watched him try to train himself to see you as just a friend. It was very difficult for him. You're just wasting his time now."

"How am I wasting his time when you're the one saying all this for him? I'll believe this when I hear it all from Yugi. Let me talk to him," she folded her arms stubbornly.

"No, you've done enough damage for one night."

"I want to hear what he has to say about this!" She was getting upset, "I'm not trying to hurt him; I'm his friend."

The pharaoh showed no mercy in his response, "you've been an awful friend to him. All you do is lead him on and break his heart."

He went too far. Téa's entire moral code revolved around friendship, and everyone knew it. The pharaoh's heart sank when he saw the effect of his words in Téa's eyes. She was still angry, but now very close to tears.

'Yami, say something,' Yugi could see that things had gotten too personal.

"Oh, no, I did not mean to-"

"You know what, you may know Yugi, but you don't know me." She turned away and ran into her house, bursting into tears.

'Pharaoh… I'm sure confessing to me wasn't easy. You were too hard on her,'Yami was surprised to hear the boy call him 'pharaoh' again, and his heart sank.

"You're right. I let my anger get the best of me. I'm sorry, Yugi," he gave Yugi control of his body again and entered the puzzle alone, feeling very ashamed of his actions.

Yugi was disappointed that Yami had left. Yugi wasn't mad, so why did the pharaoh feel the need to hide his face all of a sudden?

When he returned home he joined his friend in the puzzle right away.

He didn't see the spirit right away. He walked through the many corridors of the puzzle and called out, "Yami, are you okay? I'm not mad, you know… I appreciate that you stood up for me; I just wish you had let her down a little easier… Where are you?"

"Right here," Yugi jumped at Yami's voice right behind him, "Sorry, I wasn't expecting you."

"Did you think I was mad?"

"No… You're disappointed," he acted as if he had just kicked a puppy.

"Yami, I understand why you did it; it's fine. I would have done the same for you. I'll talk to her tomorrow. Don't worry about it."

He still looked guilty, but he calmed down. Obviously, there was nothing he could do at the moment but wait.

Yugi took the pharaoh's hand, "Come on, Yami, just relax."

He smiled sadly, "Alright, Yugi."

Yugi led him to the center of the puzzle and they sat cross-legged on the floor, still holding hands.

"You're jealous, aren't you?"

"What?" the pharaoh was taken aback by the question.

"Of Téa. You weren't just angry because she was hurting me. You hated to see her kiss me. You were jealous," Yugi smiled, teasingly.

The pharaoh frowned, and to Yugi's surprise, his cheeks were flushed red with embarrassment, "I was not…"

Yugi smiled, "Pharaoh," he scolded, sensing the lie.

Yami blushed harder when he noticed Yugi thinking about how cute he looked when he did that.

He sighed and smiled at the boy, "Yugi, of course I was jealous. I know how you felt about her… And she's a girl… She possesses her own body… She has much more to offer than I do."

Yugi got serious, "Yami, no. You know how I feel about you… And you know it's much stronger than anything I've ever felt. I don't care what anyone else has, because they just can't be you." He hugged Yami's right shoulder and snuggled against him.

Yami hugged him back, relieved, "You don't know how happy I am to hear you say that." He kissed him on the head and squeezed him affectionately.