Mew: And now to keep you all from going insane about the previous chapter.

Draiku: On your profile it says that I'M the sadistic one. I'm starting to doubt that.

Mew: -ignores and acts innocent- Also, thanks SO much for over 300 reviews!! I never thought it would make it that far! Thanks again!

Disclaimer: Mew Draiku doesn't own Yu-Gi-Oh because the characters would have sex too much, and thus banned from television.

Badass Boyfriend

Chapter 21: Rescue

The spot where Malik was supposed to be ended up being a huge, abandoned building, probably an old apartment complex in its days. There was a yellowed piece of paper in one of the broken windows reading "UP FOR SALE: CALL". The numbers had been ripped off long ago. Scattered amongst the stoop of the building were several empty beer bottles, syringes, and Fritos bags. The building itself was rather tall. On the top there were pigeons roosting, and some flew into broken windows, which were abundant. The top left corner of the roof was broken and bricks fell from it every now and then. Rats squeaked and scurried across the cement and into trashcans and allies.

Overall, it wasn't a very nice place.

The rest of the neighborhood was just as bad, I might want to put in.

"Remember to lock the doors, and keep them locked until you see us coming out," Bakura advised Mana and Shizuka. "Don't make a noise if someone comes. Hide in the back if you have to." They nodded, and Mana put on a stern face and held Shizuka close.

"I won't let anything happen to you," she murmured, and kissed her gently. Shizuka nodded and they locked all the doors.

"Also, keep the windows rolled up, too. If you need fresh air, open it a small crack. Be sure to act quick if someone comes by with a hanger and tries to unlock the door through the window, alright?" Bakura continued. He clearly had experience with this.

"So we're basically going to storm the place?" Kaiba said, eyeing the building. I nodded.

"Yeah. If you have to, call Seth, but only if you're in trouble. I imagine that he could help out a lot," I advised, surprising Kaiba, as well as myself.

"Why him?" Kaiba asked.

"He seems more experienced than you when it comes to fighting and such," I replied.

"Who's Seth?" Jou asked.

"And old friend of mine. We barely keep in touch, but he's somehow always there for me even when I don't want him around," Kaiba replied.

"Let's go," Marik said, walking towards the building. The rest of us followed and snuck in quietly. The inside of the building was even worse than the outside. It smelled strongly of urine, alcohol, drugs, and other stenches that couldn't be named. All the lights except a few were burned out, and the floors creaked. Dust covered everything, but that made footsteps visible. That small detail really came in handy, so we didn't have to search the entire place.

"Maybe one o' us should stay back wit' th' girls," Jou suggested softly.

"I think that Mana can handle at least two men pretty easily," I replied.

"How would you know?" Bakura asked.

"I dated her. Remember? She's actually really strong. Plus, we left them with switchblades," I explained.

"But my sister's still out dere! What if more 'n two guys come?" Jou said.

"You and Shizuka are related?" Kaiba asked, obviously surprised. Jou nodded.

"Well, she lives wit' m' mom an' I live wit' m' dad, so we gots different last names," he said.

"I never would've guessed," Kaiba muttered. "But they'll be fine. If we come back and they're hurt, you can beat me with one of the bats if you want."

"A'right, but you'd better be keepin' yer word," Jou said.

"I promise," Kaiba said, "and to me, a promise is like an oath."

"Good." We continued upstairs, and arrived at the top floor. The footsteps ended right before a carpet leading down a dark hallway.

"Crap," Marik said, biting his lip. "We don't have enough light. They'll probably attack us."

"Alright then, we'll just have to counter," Bakura said. "You may want to take out any piercings you have, by the way. This could get absolutely hideous."

"You can just say 'ugly'," Jou said.

"Fine. This could get ugly," Bakura replied. He removed the piercings from his ears and eyebrow, while Marik did the same. Jou, Kaiba, and I didn't have any to worry about. The only thing I was concerned about was my hair. It was long, so it could be pulled easily. Obviously that put me at a disadvantage.

"Alright, let's get in position," Bakura said. "I'll go first. Ryou, you're last, since you're weakest. Kaiba, you're after me, then Jou, then Marik. Kaiba and Marik, stand facing my right. Jou and Ryou, stand facing my left. We'll walk this way down the hall so we can see what's coming on all sides. Be ready." We nodded and lined up, and made our way down the hallway. Nothing happened, and for a second I thought we were being tricked.

I was wrong.

"ATTACK!" a teen yelled, jumping at me. Several others jumped out of the shadows. They seemed surprised, as if they'd only expected one or two people. But at least we had the advantage that way.

The teen who jumped at me was holding a switchblade, and threatened me with it. I gasped, gritting my teeth, and swung the aluminum bat at him. It hit his head dead-on, and he flew sideways a few feet. Blood stained his skin, but at least he wasn't a problem anymore.

"Dammit! Why'd so many come??!" someone complained loudly while he threw a punch at Kaiba.

"We're obviously smarter than you idiots," Kaiba replied with a glare, and kneed the kid in his crotch. At that moment, I realized that it wasn't Kaiba, but Seth doing the beating. Which was good, to say the least.

"Damn bastard!" Marik yelled, swinging his fists at a guy wearing baggy jeans, a white tank, and a golden chain around his neck. "Where is he??! Where's Malik??!"

"That dude you're looking for?" the chain guy replied. "He's dead! We killed 'im! He was a good fuck, though!" Marik gasped, frozen stiff.

"Outta the way!" Jou yelled, shoving Marik aside before he could get hit. Jou kicked Chains in the stomach and sent him flying.

On a side note, it amazed me with how powerful these guys were. On another side note, my dad would kill me if he found out where I was.

However, I was just as stunned as Marik was. Malik couldn't be dead, could he? It wasn't possible! And I'd never even gotten to say goodbye or anything. He was my best friend, and now…oh god. It couldn't be true.

"Focus, Ryou!" Bakura snapped. "We'll find Malik. Dead or alive, we'll find him. And if he's dead, I'll murder these bastards." I nodded, and we kept fighting through.

"Ryou, Marik, you two go look for Malik! We'll hold 'em back for you," Kaiba said. Marik and I nodded, and dashed through the people with our switchblades out and ready.

"You check the rooms on the right. I'll check the ones on the left," Marik said. "If he's dead, I'll make sure these guys die and go to Hell, so when I go there I can kill them again and again. If he's hurt, I'll kill them anyway." His teeth were gritted.

"Alright. I'll help you with that, if you want," I offered, completely serious.

"I'll save Chains for you," Marik replied, also completely serious. We hurried into each room and searched the corners, closets, and underneath anything that happened to be in the room. We had no luck at all, until I came into the second-to-last room.

There was Malik, naked from the waist down and bound to a mattress. His eyes were closed, and there were horrible bruises and cuts all over his body. I rushed over and cradled his still body in my arms, staring with wide eyes. He looked…dead. His piercings, every one of them, had been viciously torn out and dropped on the floor beside him. Both of his ears were bleeding, as well as his eyebrows. I noticed no blood from his chest, and guessed that they hadn't taken off his shirt at all.

"Marik?" I called. "I found him." Marik rushed in and let out a cry of pure terror. He grabbed Malik and attempted to wake him up, but it was a complete failure. Malik didn't respond at all. Not one bit. His eyelids didn't even twitch. Chains was telling the truth. They really had killed Malik.

"Oh god," Bakura said, stepping into the room. Clearly, they'd beaten up all the punks and needed to see what had happened. Marik sobbed and clutched Malik tightly, begging for him to wake up in a whisper. It was too much for me to handle. I turned away, closing my eyes. Kaiba, who'd taken Seth's place once again, clutched Jou's shoulder with his mouth open in shock. Bakura fell to his knees and wrapped his arms around me so he wouldn't fall face-flat on the floor. Normally I would've thought about how nice it felt, but dear god. My best friend had just died by the hands of some worthless bastards who had no right to live. I held onto Bakura as well and sobbed into his shoulder. He cried as well, just not so loudly. The tears just slid down his face.

"Marik," Kaiba said, stepping forward and gently touching his shoulder. "Let's go. Before they wake up." Marik gritted his teeth, but nodded. He and Bakura helped to put Malik's pants back on for him. However, Marik handed Malik's still body to Bakura.

"Hold onto him for a second," he said, his eyes dark. He left the room, switchblade clutched in a hand, and returned a few minutes later. The switchblade, once clean, was bloody. He wiped it off on an old curtain and put his blade away, then took Malik again. We walked out of the room, and I saw that Marik had slashed the wrists of each of the punks there. If they didn't wake up, they'd die. And something told me that they'd die, based on how many slashes Marik had made and how deep they were. I was confident that the bodies would never be found. In a neighborhood like this, anyone passing the building was used to the stench of rot.

-

Marik held Malik's body all the way to my house. We didn't know where else to go, and my place was the closest. At least something good had happened to Mana and Shizuka. A few punks had attacked them, but they fought back and defeated them easily. When we arrived, Mai came outside first, saw Malik in Marik's arms, and immediately walked over.

"Is he…" she said softly.

"Yeah," Marik replied in a mumble.

"Let me see his hand a second," Mai said. She gently took Malik's hand and touched his wrist. "You idiots." She muttered. We all blinked, staring at her. "You didn't even check his pulse! He's alive!" Everyone gasped, naturally. "Quick, he needs medical attention. Scoot over, What's-yer-face! I'm driving! Ryou, you call dad on your cell and tell him I'm taking Malik to the hospital." I nodded and Kaiba scooted over so Mai could drive. We rushed there while I called dad. Of course, he asked a lot of questions, and I tried to answer them. It was kind of hard, considering that Mai was driving like a complete and total maniac.

Finally, we arrived at the Emergency Entrance at the nearest hospital. We rushed inside, and Malik was taken away. Marik stared down the hallway for a moment, and we all seated ourselves in the waiting room. Ten minutes later, a nurse came out. He stood in front of Mai and Kaiba, probably assuming that they were Malik's guardians or something.

"He's in critical condition," the nurse explained. "You see, he hadn't eaten or drunk anything in the past few days, and he's suffered a lot of blood loss. Just curious, is he the boy who went missing about a week ago?"

"Yes," Marik said. "We…found him behind a dumpster in the park."

"I see. Do you have any idea what happened to him, so we can perform necessary tests and treatment?" the nurse asked, looking to him.

"…No," Marik replied. "But if you think you need to treat something, treat it."

"Alright. The doctors are currently stabilizing his body so he won't have to stay in the ICU tonight. With any luck, he'll be awake by morning," the nurse said.

"By morning?" Marik asked.

"He needs lots of rest. His body has been put under extreme stress," the nurse said. Marik nodded.

"Alright. Thanks," he said. The nurse nodded and returned to the ICU where Malik was being held. Bakura gently put an arm around Marik's shoulders to comfort him, and I took Marik's hand. He was quivering slightly.

"I want to stay until Malik wakes up," Marik said softly. "I'm not leaving until I see him open his eyes."

"Fine by us, Marik. We'll stay with you," I said. He murmured his thanks, and at least an hour more passed before the nurse returned.

"Which one of you is Marik?" he said.

"I am," Marik replied, standing.

"Come with me. Malik keeps saying your name in his sleep, and I think that if you speak to him he'll wake up. That typically happens," the nurse said. Marik's eyes brightened a bit. "Also, we'll have to cover some things with you about what we found on Malik's body." Marik nodded.

"Alright," he said, and the nurse began leading him to Malik's room. "Wait," Marik said. "I want Ryou to come, too." I blinked. Why me?

"Well, we can't have--," the nurse said.

"I don't care. Ryou is Malik's best friend, and in case Malik doesn't wake up, I want Ryou there," Marik said sternly. The nurse looked at me, then Marik, then sighed.

"Alright. Just don't tell any of the others," he said. I followed them, and we came to Malik's room. I peered into the window, half-expecting him to be wired up to life support machines. However, my friend was sleeping peacefully, an IV in his wrist. A heart monitor beeped quietly every second or so. I could see Malik's chest rising and falling, which made me sigh with relief.

"First, let me go over what we found," the nurse said, and we looked to him. "Many of his piercings were ripped out, obviously. The two on his nipples were still there, but the piercings there were bleeding, but not very much at all. The doctor believed that they'd been tugged or pulled very roughly. He had cuts on his body, obviously made by a knife or razor. There were some deep cuts on his abdomen, but we closed those. If he's ever moving, make sure that he doesn't stretch too much.

"Of course, he had many bruises, and those will take a while to heal. There was a considerable amount of bruising on his backside, and we found tears in his rectum. Among the tears we found traces of semen, leading us to believe he was raped," the nurse finished. Marik and I both gasped, eyes wide. Marik gritted his teeth and fisted his hands, and looked away. I was too stunned to move. "We're testing his blood for any STDs he may have received, so until we get the results please do not get his blood on you."

"Can I see him now?" Marik whispered.

"Yes. You both may go in," the nurse said. He opened the door for us and we stepped inside. Malik was still asleep, but the door shutting made him stir a little. Marik sat down in the chair next to his bed and gazed at him. He gently took Malik's hand in his own, and Malik slowly opened his eyes. Marik managed a weak smile, tears gathering in his eyes now.

"Marik," Malik murmured, smiling feebly. "I…"

"Ssh," Marik replied. "Don't speak. You need to rest." Malik sighed and gazed at the ceiling through exhausted eyes. He paused a moment, before speaking again, despite what Marik said.

"Do I still look nice? Without the piercings?" he asked. I was stunned. After all this, he was most concerned about how he looked??! Malik amazed me sometimes. But he was completely serious. I could tell when he looked at Marik. Marik just smiled at him.

"Malik, you've always looked beautiful, you still do, and you always will," he replied. "You're perfect in every single way." He gently kissed Malik's fingers, some of which were bandaged. Malik smiled, truly happy, and nodded a little.

"Good," he said. Marik gently stroked his face with the backs of his fingers.

"My lovely little Malik," he whispered. "I'm so glad you're back."

"Sorry for going," Malik muttered.

"It wasn't your fault." Malik gestured with a finger to Marik, who climbed into the bed and held him in his arms. As far as they were concerned, I didn't exist. All that mattered to them was each other, and I was happy for that. It was clear that they truly loved each other more than anything else in the world. In the universe, most likely. And before they'd have to face the truth that Malik had been raped and was facing the danger of HIV or other STDs, they had a moment of peace to just be happy and with each other. They had a moment to be in love.

Malik wrapped one arm, the one without the IV, around Marik's torso and pulled closer to him. He closed his eyes, smiled, and Marik stroked his hair.

"I'm not going to let anyone touch you again," Marik promised.

"I'm never going to leave you again," Malik replied.

I quietly snuck out of the room and returned to our little group. Everyone was looking at me expectantly.

"How'd it go?" Bakura asked. I was unsure of what to tell them at first.

"I shouldn't tell you what the nurse said about Malik's condition. But he's awake, and he's talking and cuddling with Marik in there," I said. Everyone sighed, relieved.

"We should probably call Isis and Rishid, right?" Shizuka asked.

"Yes, definitely. Let them know that Malik's in the ICU now with Marik, and that he's awake and talking," Bakura said. Shizuka nodded and dialed the number into her phone. She informed them with the basics—that Malik was in the ICU, but he was awake, and which hospital he was in.

Rishid and Isis arrived a few minutes later, just as Marik came out of Malik's room. My friend seemed extremely depressed.

"Can you tell us what happened to him?" Rishid asked Marik.

"I asked him. He was silent for a long time, and finally he started sobbing uncontrollably. I think…just go talk to that nurse over there. He'll explain what they found," Marik replied softly. He sat next to me and put his head in his hands, sighing. Meanwhile, Isis and Rishid spoke to the nurse. Their expressions grew pained and horrified as the nurse kept speaking.

"Marik?" I said, looking to him again. He sighed.

"Dammit. I should've went outside with him," he whispered. "It's all my fault, isn't it?"

"It's never your fault!" Mai said, standing up. Marik blinked, looking to her. I was a little shocked as well. "You never could have known that this would happen! You didn't want it to happen! So how could it possibly be your fault??!" she demanded. Marik blinked again, staring.

"Well, I--," he started.

"No, never put the blame on yourself for this. It wasn't you who made those guys do that. It was them who decided to," Mai said. "Understand?" Marik paused, and nodded. "Good," she said.

Two days passed, and Malik was finally released from the hospital. He wasn't the same at school at all. In fact, he was very jittery, and wouldn't let anyone touch him, except Marik. And even then it was just simple things, like holding hands, linking arms. The most he did was hug Marik, and Malik always made the first move. If you were going to touch his shoulder or something, you had to warn him, first. Otherwise, he'd yelp and jump about three feet into the air.

"Can I kiss you today?" Marik asked Malik, who was clutching his arm tightly. Malik nodded slowly, and Marik gently kissed his cheek. Malik sighed and kissed him back as well. "Why don't you ever let me kiss your lips?" Marik asked. Malik sighed.

"What if I have HIV or something? My lips are chapped, and bleeding a little. If you get my blood in your mouth, you'll get whatever I have!" he said, looking worried. Marik sighed.

"I'd be fine with that," he said.

"No, you wouldn't!" Malik insisted, almost shouting and startling us all. He looked away. "I don't want you to suffer." Marik sighed, gently nudging his hand first, then taking it into his own.

Things were very different, to say the least.

TBC

Mew: -kills self for making Malik be raped-

Draiku: -assists- Badass Boyfriend will never be updated again because Mew just killed herself.

Mew: -comes back to life, as always-

Draiku: …Damn.

Mew: Yay for reincarnation! Anyway… -runs from angry readers-

Yoko: You two are freaks. Anyway, thanks for reading! Please be sure to R&R if you have time!